A new life begins
by kohlbits
Summary: These are the days of our lives; ever changing, ever lasting. Wounds heal over time, but some wounds never will. Can Ephram overcome his father's resentment after he learns about Madison?
1. Default Chapter

(A/N; YEA!!! About time, right! A new Ephison fic, I'm so proud! Please tell me what you think and since I have the other chapters typed out then they should be out pretty quick!)

It seems that it was only yesterday when Madison last saw Delia and it sort of broke her heart knowing what she was about to do. She needed desparately to somehow get ahold of Ephram and tell him what has been going on in her life during the passed 3 months. Granted he was still in New York preparing for his future, but she knew that he had to know one way or the other. She was pregnant with his child afterall. She moved just outside of Denver in a spacious 2 bedroom apartment with the money Dr. Brown gave her. When she made the decision to keep the child, and at the time not to tell Ephram, Dr. Brown agreed he would help Madison out by sending her money every month. Probably about a month or so afterwards, Madison knew that she just had to tell Ephram, that he had a right to know and keeping something this big from him would only tear him apart if he found out in the future.

During this time, Madison transferred schools and Jay helped her find a job with a record label where she would help promote bands and stuff. Her second love; her first being singing, but at least she didn't have to throw it all away. She cant believe that it has already been three months; the end of summer, the start of a new semester at school and a whole new set of worries that would blanket over her once she got enough courage to do what she was about to do.

Everybody knows Delia cant keep secrets, especially really big juicy ones even if the person telling her tells her to promise not to tell. Madison, not knowing what will happen when she finally does call Delia up and tell her the news and to tell her that it's a "secret", is scared to death, she cant imagine going through this alone and she cant believe that she was actually planning on wanting to. Maybe it was to get back at Dr. Brown for not wanting to tell Ephram, or she was doing so to try to convince herself everything was normal. The morning sickness and the nausea and food cravings didnt seem to help the matters either, but she seemed to make the best of it.

Madison finally called up Delia and they chatted with each other for the longest time, as if they had never parted. Madison asked Delia to keep this part, the whole calling and talking to each other, a secret, and Delia said she would. This part was no trouble for Delia, she didn't want her best friend to get in trouble since she knows her father doesnt care for Madison much. They chatted for a week, never bringing up Ephram or the past or anything like that. By the end of the week, perhaps a few days after Ephram finally did get home from New York, Madison finally told 11 year old Delia what was going on.

"It's a secret" Madison said, "but your dad already knows."  
Innocently, Delia asked, "why dont you want Ephram to know?"  
Madison sighed, "it's sort of complicated right now...I'm not even sure why I havent told him. Don't let you dad know that you know, and if you happen to tell Ephram, tell him not to let your father know that he knows..."

"Maybe it's because you're scared of what he might do? He loves you and you shouldnt hide something like this from him" for an 11 year old girl, she was pretty calm about the whole issue. Did she even know what it all meant?

The two chatted for a couple more days and Delia managed not to tell Ephram during the first few days he was home. He was busy, afterall, registering for classes for when senior year starts up in two weeks, starting his part time job at a music studio right outside of Everwood and spending time with Amy. Madison didnt want to mess up Ephram's life, her intentions are good, she just wants Ephram to know and what he does with that information is up to him.

One day when Delia was on the phone with Madison, she said goodbye and hung up just as Ephram came into the room. Indifferently, Ephram asked, "hey you, who was that?"

Delia said simply, "Madison"

Surprised and sort of taken aback, Ephram looked at his younger sister with a confused look upon his face as if he didnt understand what she said, "who?"

"you heard me..." she said as she sat on the couch.


	2. days of our lives

One day when Delia was on the phone with Madison, she said goodbye and hung up just as Ephram came into the room. Indifferently, Ephram asked, "hey you, who was that?"

Delia said simply, "Madison"

Surprised and sort of taken aback, Ephram looked at his younger sister with a confused look upon his face as if he didnt understand what she said, "who?"

"you heard me..." she said as she sat on the couch.

Trying to act nonchalant, Ephram wandered slowly over to where Delia was, "oh yeah, so uh...how, uh, how is Madison doing these days?"

Delia looked at her brother sternly, "I cant tell you, it's a secret..."

Ephram sort of smirked, knowing his sister couldnt keep secrets for too long, he decided to play a game, "fine, don't tell me, I dont want to know anyway."

"What?!" she said surprised, "yes you do, you know you do!"

Ephram looked at his sister, "will you tell me? What's up?" he couldnt help but smile at Delia who seemed very concerned.

"She's three months pregnant..."  
Ephram's smile quickly disappeared and he cocked his head to one side to try to figure out what his sister just said.

"Dont you want to know with whose child?"  
"I'm afraid to ask" he said slowly

Quickly, Delia said, "she's pregnant with your child but I was told not to tell you because it was complicated whatever that means but you cant tell dad because he--"

Ephram interrupted her, "what do you mean, slow down, Delia! What the hell are you talking about?!?" he became sort of panicked, realizing that what she is saying could very well be true.

He went up to his room to figure things out, could this be true? Why hadn't Madison called him earlier and let him know? All Ephram could do was lay on his bed, thinking.

He stayed up in his room all weekend, he didn't even go out with Amy or talk to her on the phone. The only thing he did do, however, besides thinking about everything, was call up Madison's cell phone to talk to her, which was very awkward in itself.  
"Hello?" Madison said softly into the phone one night.

There was a pause, then she said again, "Hello, Ephram is this you?"  
"Why didn't you tell me, how could you not have told me? You told my sister, she's 11 I doubt she even knows what it all means!"  
"Listen Ephram, I don't want to talk to you like this over the phone" and with that she gave him directions to her new apartment just outside of Denver. Reluctantly Ephram said he would meet her there. He didnt exactly know what to expect, or how he would act when he saw Madison again. He felt like throwing up, or passing out.

The next day he decided to drive to Denver to meet up with Madison. He told his dad that he was going to Denver to do some shopping and he took Delia along. Why? He probably thought it would be less awkward with his sister there. They decided to meet at a cafe just outside the city, Madison was already there when Ephram and Delia showed up. Delia ran and jumped around and hugged Madison happily, Madison couldnt help but smile, she was happy to see Delia again. It was definitely awkward between Ephram and her, though. Ephram walked up to her and slightly smiled, not knowing what else to do.

"You look good..." he said

"yeah, for a pregnant woman" she said as they sat down

"no, no, that's not what I meant" he said quickly.

"Ephram," Madison said leaning forward, trying to smile, "it was a joke to try to lighten the mood."

The two were quiet for the longest time, not knowing what to say or how to say it. Then Ephram said, "Sorry for not being so talkative, I mean, I've never experienced anything like this before" and just as he said it he realized how stupid it was and wished he could take it back.

"Neither have I, Ephram! This is rather quite new to me too!"

"I'm sorry, that came out wrong..."

"Ephram, I dont want to go through this alone...I am so scared right now."  
Ephram couldn't help but reach across the table and hold her hand, "you dont have to go through it alone, not anymore." he tried making light of the situation, "if it helps, we could be scared together."

The two talked for a little while longer, Madison letting Ephram know why she hadn't told him before now and what part his father played in the whole thing. He just stared at the ground, not knowing what else to do. Of course he hated his father for trying to keep this from him, but at the same time he didn't want to let his father know that he knew and he finally came up with the conclusion that he wouldnt tell his father that he knows. No, instead he would keep this a secret and he would help Madison behind his father's back. He needed to be in Madison's life more than ever now.

(A/N; good or bad, tell me what you think please!!)


	3. scared to death

(A/N; I figured this chapter will tie in with the second chapter since I dont think the second chapter is good by itself so hopefully you all like it! You know what to do that makes me happy so go on and do it! Good or bad I wanna know!)

He needed to be in Madison's life more than ever now.

Before they parted, Madison asked Ephram if he would be able to stop by her apartment in the next couple days since there was more she wanted to discuss with him. He said he would, it was something he had to do.

Classes finally started up for Ephram and he had a light load this year, only 4 classes, the rest free periods. Two classes were with Amy and he tried to act as normal as possible around her, considering the new information he had just received days ago.

One day after school Ephram decided to meet Madison at her place where the two would talk more about what was going on. Each time he went over the less it became awkward and the two were able to talk seriously and actually sometimes laugh and joke with each other. It wasnt like old times, it probably would never be like old times, but it was a start. They were sitting around the large living room in the two bedroom apartment when Ephram said, "so what's going to happen? I'll drop out of school, get my GED or whatever and move closer to you. I mean, you're in your last year of college, you should finish that out."  
"Are you crazy Ephram?" she asked looking at him strangely, "I can always go back to college and finish out my last year, but you can't go back to high school." She shook her head, "you have to finish, besides, after this semester I will have one semester left but I am planning on taking it off so I can be with the baby since I figure it will come in mid January or so." she paused, "then...after that we will see what happens."  
"Well, there are several music studios up here which are closer than the one I work at now. Once school gets over then I can move up here to be closer to you and our child."

The two looked at each other, Ephram wanting to hold her but not knowing if it would be appropriate. Madison always loved the way Ephram looked at her when he was worried about something, she tried to smile but she only sighed.

Ephram finally said, "well...we have a long time to figure it out, to get ready, ya know"

"No we dont Eph..." replied Madison, "we have less than six months."  
Hearing those words made Ephram realize that she was right, they did only have less than six months to figure things out. He wasnt sure how to react, instead he sat back in his chair and looked the otherway.   
Seeing this, Madison couldnt help but move closer to him. She looked at him and her eyes filled with tears, "I'm scared Ephram. Scared to death, I dont know what to do or how to do it" and Ephram's first instinct was to grab her and hold her in his arms, which he did just that.

Trying to sound convincing, Ephram said softly, "we'll get through this...together."

"What about your dad" replied Madison as she pulled away and wiped a tear from her face.

"What about him? I dont care anymore, I mean, he did try to send you away and never tell me about it."  
"He was just looking out for your well being."  
Surprised, Ephram looked at her wide eyed, "how can you say that?! You cant believe that, Madison, his intentions were malicious and there is no way you can stand up for him and what he did."

"I just dont want you to hate your father because of this situation."  
Again, still surprised and wide eyed, Ephram said, "Hello, news flash, my father and I never really got along in the first place! You know how many fights you walked in on? Quite a few and that wasnt even the half of it. He just ruined the relationship we were trying to build as father and son. You may be able to forgive him for that, but I cant."

The two chatted a little while longer than Ephram decided it was time to leave so his father wouldnt become suspicious.

"Same time in a few days?" asked Ephram with a smile

"Count on it." replied Madison as they both stood up. This time they hugged each other goodbye. It was a friendly hug, and they both seemed to need it right now.


	4. run away

The next couple days Ephram spent some time with Amy. She knew something was up because he wasnt himself, which sort of concerned her. As they were sitting on the couch, she propped her elbow on the arm then cradled her head as she looked at Ephram, "what's up with you, Ephram?"

"What do you mean?" he asked as he watched the movie they were watching intently.

"I dont know, it's like you havent been yourself lately."  
He looked at her, not sure what to say. Should he just forget everything and run far far away!? Then again, he didnt want to be like his father who was never there for him. Even though Ephram was scared, he had a responsibility and he had to face it even if he just felt like crawling under a rock and hiding. There was no doubt he was scared, but facing Amy seemed to make him cringe. Should he lie? Should he tell her the truth? Either way he would end up hurting her. He opened his mouth to say something then closed it just as fast. _Now's not the time, she doesn't need to know just yet_, he thought to himself so he said, "I'm fine, just had a lot going on lately, that's all." Then he remembered how he felt when he learned that Madison was pregnant and that is father kenw about it and that he lied. He didn't want that, he didn't want Amy angry at him, but he figured she would be angry either way so no matter what he was going to have to find a way to tell her. He sat back, closed his eyes to figure out a way to present this information to his girlfriend. He's known for two weeks now and it's been hard to keep this type of thing from anybody, especially Amy of all people. At the last minute he stopped himself and decided he would converse with Madison first to see if she had a battle plan.

The next day after work, he decided to head to Madison's. It was a very warm breezy day so the two of them decided to go for a walk to the local ice cream joint where they would meet up with a couple friends of hers before they decided to head to the mall.

"Hey guys!" she yelled happily as they all congregated around a picnic table. "Ephram, these are my friends, Khaki – the one with the blue streaks in her hair, and Yanu, the lanky tall one with no shoes!" she laughed, "Guys, this is Ephram."

Yanu and Khaki greeted Ephram happily with a warm hug, and they chatted with Madison a little while longer before heading towards the mall. Madison gave brief profiles of them to Ephram when they left, "So, those are my artsy fartsy hippie friends," she laughed, "I work with Khaki at the recording industry and I met Yanu through her. We used to hang out a lot" she slightly smiled but didnt have to say anymore because Ephram figured it out. They decided to finally get some ice cream.

It was almost like old times, they were laughing and joking and having a great time and they seemed to be able to tell each other almost everything again. They sat across from each other at the picnic table just talking about nothing at all.

When there was a brief silence, Ephram asked, "do you have a plan when it comes to telling people?"  
"No why?" she asked, smiling slightly.

Ephram thought for a second, then said, "Because I was thinking we could, uhm...uh, keep it a secret?"  
Laughing, Madison looked down at her little pot belly, "I doubt that we could pass that off, Ephram." she got a thought in her head then looked at Ephram seriously, "you haven't told Amy yet, have you?"

He sighed, "not yet..."

"She has the right to know, Ephram..."

Ephram chuckled, which made Madison ask, "what are you laughing at? This isn't a funny situation, Ephram!"

"this petty arguing is what's funny" he paused, trying not to smile, "it's what we used to do all the time just to get under each other's skin, remember." even though he knew Madison wasnt too happy with him right now, he couldnt help but smile. He tried to cover it by putting his hand over his mouth, which only made Madison grit her teeth, but in the end she ended up smiling herself and the two ended up laughing together remembering the past.

As the two got up to head back to the apartment, Ephram said, "Yeah...Amy does have the right to know what's going on." he looked ahead pensively, "but I'm afraid of what it might do to her. I mean..." he took a deep breath, "I wont be surprised if she breaks up with me, but it's the whole telling everybody else afterwards."  
"Would she do that? Tell everybody else?" Madison asked

"To get back at me, I think she would."

The two talked and joked a little while longer before Ephram figured it was time to get home before his father got suspicious. The day seemed so perfect, Ephram grabbed Madison's hand and pulled her to him and embraced her in a hug. It was the way he hugged her that made her suspicious, which made her pull away. "We cant do this Ephram."

Trying to act stupid as if he didn't just get caught, he said, "what do you mean?"  
"Dont do that, Ephram, you know what I mean."

he sighed, she was right afterall. Before he could stop himself, he asked, "would you still feel the same way if I wasnt with Amy?" he shook his head slightly and shut his eyes tightly realizing that wasn't a good question to ask and he wished he could take it back.

(A/N; read and review please, it means a lot!! more the merrier and I'll get more chapters out as soon as I can!)


	5. telling the truth

The day seemed so perfect, Ephram grabbed Madison's hand and pulled her to him and embraced her in a hug. It was the way he hugged her that made her suspicious, which made her pull away. "We cant do this Ephram."

Trying to act stupid as if he didn't just get caught, he said, "what do you mean?"  
"Dont do that, Ephram, you know what I mean."

he sighed, she was right afterall. Before he could stop himself, he asked, "would you still feel the same way if I wasnt with Amy?" he shook his head slightly and shut his eyes tightly realizing that wasn't a good question to ask and he wished he could take it back.

Madison's mouth opened but nothing came out, so she closed it again.

"Well?" Ephram asked intently.

Instead of replying, Madison just pushed him out the door and said, "see you in a couple days." and bit her lip, which made Ephram wonder what she was thinking. She avoided the subject. She was good at that. The first time Ephram told her he loved her, she was able to avoid that like the plague and she was doing it again.

Instead of going home when he left Madison's, he decided to call up Amy and told her to meet him at tomorrow morning's study hall. All through the night he couldn't sleep, he kept tossing and turning trying to figure out how to break the news to her. Could he tell her and have her not tell anybody else? What if it somehow gets back to his father, what would Ephram do then? He figured he would deal with that when it came.

The next morning Delia came in and jumped on the end of Ephram's bed. When she figured Ephram was awake, she stopped jumping and went up to him and asked happily, yet candidly, "How's Madison! Hey, when the baby is born can I be the aunt?"

Ephram couldnt help but laugh, "You're going to be the aunt no matter what, you weirdo, that's how it works when a sibling has a kid."  
Trying to sound convincing, she replied, "I knew that! So, how is she, is she fat yet?"

He laughed again, "She's doing very well, but she's not fat. Her belly is growing if that's what you mean."

"Does it look weird?" she asked as she turned up her face.

Since he figured she would be asking him questions for the rest of the morning, or until he left for school, he said, "How about next week I take you up to see her and you can ask her yourself, what do you think?"

Delia's face beamed, "That sounds awesome!!"  
"But dont tell dad."  
"Right!" Delia said as she ran out of the room happily.

That morning Ephram met Amy at their normal spot. They kissed hello and then Ephram said, "I have something to tell you."

Amy replied as she shifted her backpack, "good, is it what you havent been able to tell me during the passed several days?"  
"Okay...uhmm...you might want to brace yourself because you may end up hating me after I finish..."

"Just tell me Ephram, please. You've been acting so odd and I want to know what's up."

Ephram lowered himself into the chair next to Amy. He looked at her and said with all the courage he could muster, "Madison's pregnant."

At first it didnt click in Amy's head, so she said, "oh, that's too bad, how are you doing?" Just then she realized what Ephram said and her eyes widened and her mouth slowly opened.

"How long have you known?" it sounded as if she had to force the question out, she just stared at him, waiting for him to answer.

"Almost three weeks..."  
Air escaped her mouth, "and you managed to keep it from me for this long?! How could you do that, Ephram! This changes everything between us!"

Quickly, Ephram said, "it doesnt have to."  
"Are you kidding, Ephram! You have a kid on the way, with a girl you used to be in love with, who knows if you still are! I cant compete with that and I wont! There's always something to keep us from being together and now we never will be." With that, she got up and walked away, Ephram tried calling after her but it was too late. This made him upset, but then again he wasnt sure how he should feel, or how Amy should have taken the news. He was just glad that he finally told her.

After lunch, he had back-to-back study halls and decided to just go home instead and think about the life events that were unfolding before him. The words that Amy said just kept repeating in his head over and over, _you have a kid on the way, with a girl you used to be in love with, who knows if you still are_. Since everything in his life seemed like it was on fast forward ever since he got home from New York he didnt really have much time to figure out his feelings. It was as if he were detached, as if it was all a dream and he was going to wake up any time. There was no reason to confront those feelings until now. It was real and it was happening, Ephram just needed a jolt to realize it and he definitely got it from Amy.

(A/N; sorry for not updating my other fic, too busy with this one I guess you could say. But hopefully I should have another chapter out before next week for that fic. In the mean time, read and review this fic! Thanks, love you all muchly!)


	6. come what may

Several hours later, a bit after dinner which Ephram missed, he decided to go visit Madison to see if he couldnt figure things out. His thoughts were interrupted by his father who called him from downstairs, "Ephram, come down here please!"

Oblivious, Ephram went downstairs lazily and greeted his father in the kitchen. This was actually the first time in weeks that they came face to face and for some reason Ephram could feel this wasnt going to be a happy encounter.

"Amy Abbott came into the office today in tears!" he said loudly

"Oh great, here we go" Ephram said under his breath. He decided he didnt want to argue with his father so he got his jacket from the closet and headed towards the door. He opened the front door as his father yelled and blurted out the only thing he could think of, "How in the hell did you find out, Ephram!" he sounded very angry, but then again his son just found out the worst mistake he had ever made.

Ephram slammed the door just as quick as he opened it. What his father said set him off and he turned around towards his father, "How in the hell could you keep this from me, dad! Who in the hell do you think you are!"

A shouting match ensued between the Brown men, it was inevitable afterall.

"I was protecting you, you're just a child!"

"I am 17 years old, I can make my own decisions! And you trying to keep this from me is the biggest mistake you've ever made!" By now Ephram's bottom lip was quivering as he tried to hold it together, "EVERYTHING YOU AND I EVER HAD, OR TRIED TO HAVE, YOU RUINED IT THE DAY YOU TOLD MADISON NOT TO TELL ME AND WHEN YOU DECIDED YOU WERE GOING TO KEEP IT FROM ME! YOU HAD NO RIGHT!"

"YOU'RE TOO YOUNG TO TAKE CARE OF A CHILD! I WAS LOOKING OUT FOR YOUR BEST INTEREST, YOU HAVE YOUR WHOLE LIFE AHEAD OF YOU!"

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ANYWAY! UNLIKE YOU, DAD, I AM ACTUALLY GOING TO BE IN MY CHILD'S LIFE AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT! I AM GOING TO BE A BETTER FATHER THAN YOU EVER WERE! LET'S FACE IT DAD, YOU WERE SCARED AND HID BEHIND YOUR WORK AND NOW YOU THINK I'LL MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE! YOU'RE WRONG!" and with that, Ephram turned again towards the front door and put his hand on it with every intention of opening it and walking out, but then he stopped and looked back at his father, he still wasnt done yelling at him for what he did, "AND CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, DAD, SENDING MONEY EVERY MONTH DOES NOT REPLACE A FATHER. HOW DARE YOU MAKE THAT DECISION! IT WAS ALL MY DOING AND I HAVE TO DEAL WITH WHAT COMES, NOT YOU!" before his father could scream against that, Ephram was out the door and in his car and on his way to Madison's before he realized what just happened. Ephram practically slammed the door off it's hinges.

Andy couldnt help but scream to get out his frustration, "NOOOOO!!!!" just then there was a knock on the door, it was Nina.

"Andy, what's going on! I heard you two screaming at each other then I heard Ephram's car screech out like a mad man, what's going on!"

Trying to calm himself, he started pacing and deeply breathing.

Nina decided to make some tea, it would help calm Andy down to tell her what just happened. Nobody spoke for about 10 minutes, Andy didn't stop pacing until much later, though.

"I just made the worst mistake in father history, Nina. I just ruined everything I worked for with my son, our relationship is no longer. It's gone, kaput, dead."

"You're not making any sense, Andy, what do you mean?"

"I'll give you the short version..." he breathed heavily, "Ephram just found out that Madison is pregnant with his child and he hates me because I knew about it but kept it from him for almost four months now."

Alarmed, Nina replied, "Andy you didnt! How could you!"

Andy threw his hands over his face, "I dont know, I dont know! He was so happy and there was no way I could take that from him. I thought I was doing the right thing."

"Stupid thinking Andy" replied Nina simply, "so what are you going to do now?"

"there's nothing I can do." he said sounding defeated.

Ephram finally made his way to Madison's apartment, he called her ahead of time to let her know he was on his way.

She opened the door when he arrived, and he quickly started telling her about the fight with his dad. He entered the apartment, raising his arms, and looked at her before brushing passed her, "well it's over, my life that is! I told Amy today and she ended up telling her father who told my father who came home to scream at me making me feel as if I was in the wrong for what I have done!"

he wasnt making any sense, Madison put up her hand and interrupted him, "What are you talking about, slow down, Ephram, take it easy."

"The shit hit the fan, Madison. My dad found out that I know about you and instead of just confronting me about it he blew up in my face and started screaming at me." he blinked several times to try to hold back the tears, "all I could do was scream back." Ephram sat down and just looked straight ahead, "he had no right to do that. How could he do that?" the more he seemed to think about it, the angrier he became and the quicker his eyes filled with tears. Madison embraced him tightly, she definitely knew how he felt since she was put in a similar situation not too long ago.

A few hours later it was as if Ephram forgot all his worries. The two were sitting around the table laughing and joking, eating ice cream.  
"So the other day Delia asked me if she could be the aunt."

Madison laughed, "no way! She's such a character."

For the next few days Ephram was able to slip in and out of his house without seeing much of his father. When they did see each other it was mainly just to say hello or goodbye or to give each other hard glares. Ephram was able to talk to Amy about some things and she said that she didnt know where they stood anymore. Sometimes days were good and sometimes days were bad. It definitely seemed like the relationship, if that's what you want to call it, was going downhill. Between work and school and spending time with Madison, picking out baby furniture and all, he and Amy didnt spend too many days together.


	7. a new beginning

(A/N; although I didnt get as many reviews as I was hoping, I'm still updating because I have several thoughts going on in this head of mine for this here fic, which I think is turning out pretty good. Hopefully ya'll tell me what you think, good or bad or indifferent.)

One day in October, Amy called Ephram up, "I've been thinking about it Ephram and I cant do this anymore. I guess it was never meant to be, we're just destined to be friends."  
"Is that how you really feel?" he asked as he was pre-occupied finishing up some homework so he could visit Madison.

"No, Ephram, it's not, but I really dont have any choice in the matter now do I! Whenever somebody brings up Madison, your eyes light up. You're still in love with her whether you want to admit it or not. I cant compete with that and I think it's best if we just go back to being friends." with that, she hung up the phone. She was right, things had changed between them but he knew their relationship would end like this.

Was it true? Was it really that obvious when somebody spoke about Madison? He couldnt help but smile, and he realized he just got his proof which made him smile even more. He knew he had to do something since Madison was carrying their child. Just being there wasnt enough, he had to do more even if nobody, mainly Amy and his father, agreed with it. But what? With that, he set off to figure things out.

A few days later he and Madison were sitting around her apatment looking at baby stuff. "I think we should pick a name" Ephram said simply.

Madison pursed her lips, "I feel that, if I do then it will make everything real. Its like, if the child inside me doesnt have a name then it really isnt happening."  
"But Madison...it _is_ happening and you know that. We have three months."

Trying to lighten the mood, she chuckled, "is that all...I'm so scared Ephram"

"Are you kidding! We're ready, we're going to do this together, one step at a time."  
"Your dad is still sending me money every month."

Ephram shrugged, "I told him he didnt need to anymore, but we're not exactly talking these days. We have enough money set aside so you dont need to worry about that." The two decided to have some ice cream and went into the kitchen. They were sitting around the kitchen table laughing and joking. Ephram looked at Madison's mouth and chuckled, "you have some ice cream on your upper lip" and when she was about to wipe it away, Ephram couldnt help but say, as he moved closer, "hold on, I got it" and took his finger and wiped it slowly away. The two seemed to share something and Ephram moved even closer, touching his lips to hers.

"Oh my god!" replied Madison as she pulled away

"What!" replied Ephram stunned.

"I dont know!" she replied as she put her hand to her forehead

"What?!" he asked confused as she stood up

"we cant do this!"

"Why!"

"Aren't you with Amy" she said as she looked at him.

He sank into his chair and looked at the table, "...not really, um, it's complicated..."  
"Why are you trying to make it even more complicated Ephram? Things were going so well."

"Because I still care about you, Madison, is that what you want to hear! I still have feelings for you and no matter what I do I cant fight them! The other day when you told me to touch your stomach because you felt the baby kick, it was then I realized that everything was real and I couldnt just ignore my feelings anymore." he got a sort of sly look upon his face as he pulled something from his pocket.

"Ephram! What are you doing!" replied Madison sort of shocked.  
"I've thought a lot about this and...Looks like I'll have to take out the big guns, then." he took out his class ring from a small box, "I was wondering if you would marry me, Madison."  
"Shut up, Ephram!" She didnt know how to react so she just said the first thing that came to her head, "we're not playing house here Ephram!"

Ephram was stunned and stood up, "I dont want to _play_ anything, Madison! I love you and want to be in your life, in our child's life!"  
"I dont want this child to be born out of wedlock!" she said stupidly

"The child wont be born out of wedlock! It'll be born out of love, you know that!" Ephram was able to calm Madison down and after awhile the two calmed down and were able to talk about it more efficiently.

"This was definitely something I wasnt expecting" she said slowly as they made their way to the living room and sat down.

"Can I tell you what I've been thinking?" he asked. Madison just nodded so he continued, "I can't afford a real ring right now so my high school ring will have to do. I figured we could get married after I finish high school and when I turn 18. But until then we would live apart like we do now." he looked at her warmly, "I want us--, that is if there is an us-- to take things slow and not to rush into anything." he smiled, "we have the rest of our lives. I want you to know that I am in this for the long haul and I wont skip out on you, I hope you take me seriously now."  
The two talked a little bit longer before Ephram figured it was time to leave. He joked, "Just so you know, I think you used the whole 'out of wedlock' thing in the wrong context."

Madison chuckled, "I know. It was the only thing I could think of at that moment thank you very much."

It was as if they were on their first date because saying goodbye felt so awkward. Ephram leaned in slowly and gave her a kiss on the cheek, even though he wanted to just grab her and hold her all night. The two looked at each other before Ephram whispered, "see you later..." and he smiled then left. He skipped to his car happily, he knew this was the path he had to take. He didn't get his answer; whether or not Madison would marry him, but he was happy nonetheless since things were finally coming together. As he drove home he began to think of the future and how things would be completely different, but it would work out and he was determined to succeed and prove his father wrong.


	8. a moment in time

(A/N; I KNOW! Updates arent as fast as I'd like them to be, or I'm sure as fast as you'd like them to be. I've been so busy but hopefully this chapter will make up for it. The thoughts for this fic that are in my head arent coming out quick enough, sorry about that!)

The next week, the two started going to LaMaz classes and took parenting classes every chance they got, which made it even more real. Between work, school and preparing for this new life, Ephram had no time to himself. The semester was almost over, just a little under two months left. As he promised Madison, he was taking the relationship pretty slow, didn't want to make any of the mistakes he had in the past.

One day while at work, Ephram got a call from Madison.

"Hey you, what's up, are you okay?" he asked concerned since she never called him at work before.

"Oh yeah!" she said cheerfully, "I just want to give you a quick call and tell you that...tell you that I love you."

This definitely made Ephram smile since he hadn't heard her say those words for almost a year. He teased her, "you said it first this time! I love you too."

"I have to go now, but I'll see you later." and she hung up the phone. Ephram was in a good mood for the rest of the day and nothing could get him down. This made him think of something to do for her, something to make her feel special and let her know that he still thinks she's the most beautiful person in the world. He called up Yanu after he got out of work and asked him to take Madison to a movie so Ephram could prepare a special evening. Yanu was a tall lanky black man with long dreads who loved to breakdance and he met Khaki at a club. Khaki was rather eccentric with blue hair and loved wearing her oversized overalls with paint stains and holes.   
Yanu told Ephram that he had him covered and would take Madison out for a few hours, "Its about gosh durn time that you did something special for her! I mean, she talks about you almost every chance she gets!"  
"really?" asked Ephram surprised

"dude, she loves you and she wants to marry you, she just doesnt know how to bring it up so maybe tonight will encourage her to say something." he then said candidly, "Just don't let her know that I told ya, right!"

Ephram laughed, "you got it, thanks Yanu!" then the two hung up and Ephram went to work on figuring things out to surprise Madison.

Ephram drove to her house with a half dozen pink roses and a red carnation, but when he got there his plans sort of fell through because Madison was still at the apartment. He quickly called Yanu who told him that Madison was insistent on not leaving the apartment.

"Hope ya got a plan B, brother!" he chuckled.

"not really" Ephram replied, but he figured he could wing it anyway. He thought for a few minutes then decided to go up to the apartment with the little stereo he had in his car. When he got to her door, instead of knocking he decided to play one of her favorite songs by Vertical Horizon;

_He's everything you want_

_He's everything you need_

_He's everything in side of you_

_That you wish you could be_

He played it just loud enough that Madison would want to investigate to find out where the music was coming from.

Yanu started laughing and thought, 'good one, Ephram, boy, very nice.'

"What are you laughing at?" just then she heard something but wasnt quite sure what it was and decided to try to find where it was coming from. As she got closer to the front door, the music became louder,

_I am everything you want_

_I am everything you need_

_I am everything inside of you _

_That you wish you could be_

_I say all the right things_

_At exactly the right time_

Just then Madison opened the front door to find a small stereo sitting in front of her playing one of her favorite songs. She looked around and then saw Ephram standing off to the side with his hands behind his back.

"What are you doing!" she hissed, trying not to smile.

He didnt say anything, instead he just walked closer to her and held out the flowers which made her gasp. She took them slowly and Ephram leaned forward to whisper in her ear, "read the card", which she did just that. The card read; 'There is a rose for each day of the week that I will be by your side. The red carnation, since it will never die, represents my love for you since that too will never die. You will always and forever, have my heart.'

Madison covered her mouth with her hand. After a few minutes, she finally said, "this is what I wanted." she threw her arms around Ephram's neck and hugged him tightly, whispering, "I want to marry you, Ephram."

He didnt know what to do, he just grabbed her, wrapped his arms around her and kissed her passionately. Madison wanted to just melt with that kiss since she had been waiting for it for as long as she could remember.

To intentionally ruin a perfect moment, Khaki said, "invite us to the wedding now kids!" which made Madison laugh.

"Oh, before I forget" replied Ephram as he pulled out a pager, "I got a pager and here is the number, Madison, so in case you need me and I'm not readily available then you can call that and I'll come running." he smiled, "I'm sure it will come in handy."

For the rest of the evening she couldnt help but hold Ephram's hand, even during dinner. She finally realized that she wasn't alone anymore and there was no need to be scared because she had Ephram. The four year age difference didnt seem to bother her anymore. He was so wise beyond his years that, even if he was scared or freaked out about everything, he barely showed it, which gave Madison strength. Before Ephram left, he took the little box that held the ring out of his pocket and put it up to his face. He opened it towards Madison. She smiled like a little kid as Ephram pulled it out of the box and slid it gently on her finger. He tilted his head and looked at her in a loving way. He leaned in slowly and kissed her softly. "I'll see you" he whispered as he moved some stray hairs out of her face. Madison couldnt help but touch his face and kiss him again. Ephram seemed to always find a way to make her feel beautiful, even being six months pregnant.


	9. selfishness

November came and went, nothing too drastic happened. The baby's room was finally set up. Ephram and Madison were getting closer, nothing seemed to be able to keep them apart. Ephram and his father were still not talking, which started to bother Delia, Nina, and everybody else that came across the two. They were all family afterall and not making amends with each other after three months saddened Delia, it was as if she were living with two complete strangers who despised each other for different reasons.

She finally got to hang out with Madison one day in early December even though it was against her father's wishes. Dr. Brown made a very big mistake and he wasnt owning up to it and that is why he and Ephram are still angry with each other. Of course Ephram has had thoughts of running away, just hopping on a plane back to New York City, but no matter where he runs to he will always have his child and Madison in the back of his head. Madison was his life now, and he was happy. He was so much in love that he couldnt bear the thought of ever actually running away.

They say, no matter how prepared you are to have a baby, you are never prepared once you finally have it, and this not only scared Ephram since he didn't know how good of a father he would be, but it also made him anxious because he was only 17 and taking care of a new life that would depend on him for everything just freaked him out.

His father was still sending Madison some money every month, despite what the two had told him in the past, especially Ephram. Maybe Dr. Brown was doing this because of how ashamed he was or how guilty he felt. But, if he felt any of those, wouldn't he apologize to his son for trying to do him wrong?

"You look like an overstuffed watermelon!" laughed Delia as she and Madison were sitting on the couch in her apartment one evening while Ephram was out running some errands.

"How's that work, Delia? An over stuffed watermelon?" she said as she took a bite out of her cookie. The two laughed together, then Madison said, "you want to help me pick out baby names?"  
"You mean, you guys haven't done that yet?! You have the baby room set up and ready to go, you have the baby car-seat, the baby clothes and everything else imaginable to deal with a baby but you dont have the baby name?!" she said surprised as she shifted the baseball cap on her head.

"not yet"

"okay, lets play a game, I go first." she said as she got excited, "I'll rhyme names and you tell me what you like." she started naming off names that rhymed, "Kenton, Benton, Trenton...uhm...Denton" she closed one eye and scrunched up her face to concentrate, "Braiden, Hayden, Jaden, Aiden...uhm...Rayden?" then she motioned to take back the last name, "no, nevermind, last name is bad, how about Kayden? Ha!" she started laughing.

"What rhymes with Posh?" joked Madison as she watched Delia figure the names out

"Posh...uhh...Posha? Tasha? No, too common, sorry I won't let you use that name!" then she went on, "Sasha? Fasha? Nope, you got me, I'm out of names."  
"Well, out of all those names I liked Sasha and Trenton."

"Jaden is too celebrity-ish" Delia said seriously as she thought back, "I mean, it's like the latest trend or something, every time you turn around a celebrity just had a kid and they are naming it Jaden! Or if you're Gwyneth Paltrow then you're going to the extreme and naming your kid after a fruit! Who knows what these celebrities will think of next, 'Verizon' or 'Sprint!' I mean, come on!"

Madison couldn't help but laugh. After a little bit, the two settled down and decided to watch a movie, just the two of them, something they hadn't done in a very long time.

"I miss this" Delia said as she shoved a mouthful of popcorn in her mouth, "spending time with you is always fun"

"I feel the same way, sweetie" replied Madison happily.

Just then, Delia becamse semi-serious, "In a way I'm glad you got pregnant."

Surprised at this, Madison shifted herself on the couch, then asked, "why is that, Delia?"  
"Because, you and Ephram love each other so much and when you broke up then he went out with Amy. She never played with me or hung out with me, she was selfish and I was sad. I missed you."  
"Oh sweetheart--"

"It's like fate." Delia said with a smile on her face as she jumped up to get more food from the kitchen.

While she was gone, Madison tried to think about all of this from an 11 year old perspective. Afterall, she was Delia's best friend and she wanted to try to understand where she was coming from. In a way, Madison was glad she got pregnant too. Maybe it's selfish thinking, but, she did love Ephram, she loved his whole family and the thought of not being with him broke her heart. Breaking up in the first place was never really clear, it was just something that happened.

Her concentration was broken when she heard Delia singing in the kitchen, probably trying to figure out what else to eat since now Madison's cupboards were filled with junk food. She covered her face and tried not to laugh aloud, her beautiful blond hair falling in front of her.

By the time Delia finally did come back, Madison sort of understood where Delia was coming from and she was glad Delia told her how she felt. When Delia sat back down on the couch and placed her food on the coffee table, Madison couldnt help but start tickling her. The two were laughing and joking and screaming with delight, when all of a sudden Madison grabbed her stomach and gasped, "Oh my god!"  
Panicked, Delia shot up, "Oh no! What's wrong!" her face turned from ease to pale and frightened, not sure what to do.

Madison didnt realize her practical joke would bother Delia so much so she stopped suddenly, "Just kidding, sweetheart, it was a joke, I'm sorry!" and she started laughing.

Trying not to smile after her brief frightened spell, Delia said straight faced, "That was a good one, but dont ever do it again!"

Meanwhile, Ephram was finishing up running errands and doing other little things when he got a call from his dad as he headed back to Madison's place, which surprised him very much since the last time he and his father even spoke more than a couple words to each other was in September... Now it's December.

"What do you want?" Ephram said indifferently


	10. calmed nerves

Ephram was finishing up running errands and doing other little things when he got a call from his dad as he headed back to Madison's place, which surprised him very much since the last time he and his father even spoke more than a couple words to each other was in September... Now it's December.

"What do you want?" Ephram said indifferently

"I wanna know when yer going to stop this charade" his father sounded a bit drunk

Ephram got an urge and wanted to yell, but realized his father was drunk, "Dad, I'm not going to talk to you while you are like this. You haven't made my life easy in the passed few months and if you start in on me now then it wont make it any easier! Plus I didn't do anything, you should be the one apologizing!"

"I'm not apologizing for anything, I did nothing wrong" he slurred his words

"oh my god!" Ephram pulled the cell phone away from his face and looked at it angrily, "you lied to me for one! Dad!" Ephram wanted to say something else but could find no words to express how he was feeling. At this point he was just so frustrated that no words would come out of his mouth.

"Jes' trying to protect my oldest son, I dun wanna lose you!"  
"TOO LATE!" yelled Ephram into the phone as he parked the car in the parking lot of Madison's apartment building. That slipped out, but he was too irritated to care so he just said, "Gah! I'm hanging up now, bye, dad!" and hung up the phone. As he made it up to the apartment, he thought to himself as he shook his head side to side, 'he could never lose me...besides, he never had me in the first place...' He took a couple deep breaths and calmed himself down before going inside.

Since he had a key to get inside the apartment, he let himself in and was welcomed by laughter coming from the living room, which put a smile on his face, it was definitely something he needed right now. When he entered the living room, Delia saw him and yelled out, "Ephram! Guess what!" she was still laughing, "'member that rhyming game I did with you? What names did you pick?"

Not thinking too much of it as he put his bag down and walked toward Madison, he replied, "Uh, one of the -enton ones" he chuckled. He kissed Madison softly on the lips and raised his eyebrows to let her know he missed her.

"Would it have been Trenton?" chuckled Madison

"yeah, how'd you know?" he asked surprised then smiled, "oh yeah, and Floyd."

"Floyd?!" Madison said confused looking at him strangely.

"Did I say Floyd? I meant Cloyd" and he grinned widely at the stupid little joke he made. He then looked at his baby sister and tugged on the front of her baseball cap and said, "why'd you want to know what name I picked, squirt?"

Delia answered, "because that was the name Madison picked! Uncanny, huh!" she laughed because she used a big word even though she didn't know what it meant.

"Dee, that was actually in the correct context, kudos to you." he smiled.

"What do you think of Sacha?" asked Madison amused

"cute name," he looked around, "did you know it means the helper of mankind...or something like that..." he laughed.

Delia interrupted"And why don't you guys want to know what the baby is?"

Ephram chuckled and looked at Madison as he sat down next to her, "we do know what the baby is, we just want to keep it a surprise for everybody else."

Madison smiled and bit her bottom lip and cradled her head in the palm of her hand as she rested her elbow on the couch.

"You wont even tell _me!_" cried Delia, exaggerating the last word, "but you tell me practically everything! Tell me now!"

"really want to know?" asked Ephram

She nodded her head frantically

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "hmm, no." he chuckled, "you'll have to wait with the rest of 'em"

The next week was school vacation and Ephram managed to work 36 to 45 hours at the music studio each week. He was excited about what was going to come in the next couple months. Surprisingly Madison wasn't too hormonal and she had only used the pager a couple times. Classes ended for her as well for the fall term and she put in for maternity leave at the beginning of January since the doctor said the baby would be due then. She couldnt believe that she had gone from scared and freaked out and unprepared, to anxious and freaked out and sort of prepared. At least she wasnt alone in this.

At one point everything was going so well for the two of them until a couple days before New Years Eve when they got into a little argument. During that time, Madison was working for her company and she had been spending time with one of the people Ephram despised the most, or at least, was most jealous of, Jay. He was helping out a friend who was working on an album and Madison said she'd help him out as well. Since they were spending much time together Ephram got jealous and was hardly around her. New Years Eve went by unnoticed because the two weren't really talking and everybody else could sort of feel the tension. When ever Madison did call Ephram, he was always busy or wouldnt be very talkative. It was as if he were avoiding her and she didn't understand why, and it saddened her and she became sort of paranoid. What if Ephram was having second thoughts about this new life of theirs?

(A/N; I need reviews people! How will I know if I should continue if I dont get at least a few reviews? Good bad or indifferent, just let me know what you think! I really would like to continue this story, just let me know how its doing...)


	11. thoughts of you

What if Ephram was having second thoughts about this new life of theirs?

While Madison was spending time with Jay, Ephram was at his dad's trying to figure things out. Why did Jay always have to come between them? Should he tell Madison how he's feeling about it? No...He figured, it would only make her angry...it was stupid afterall, right, being jealous of an ex boyfriend. Little did he know though, the less he spent with Madison, the more Madison became upset. At first she tried to shrug it off but after the middle of the second week of barely talking to the love of her life, she couldnt help but cry. Why was he avoiding her? All these bad thoughts started rolling through her head and she had to set them straight, so one day she called Ephram up, "hey you, where are you, I've hardly seen you at all this week, or even last week for that matter."

Ephram shrugged his shoulders, "well, you're spending all your time with Jay I figured you wouldnt notice if I was around or not."

"Is this what this is about?! How can you say that, Ephram? Why do you have to act this way when Jay comes around? He means no harm."

"I'm not acting any way."

"yeah you are! Like the jealous boyfriend where everything you do is dramatic"  
"Can we not have this conversation now. I'm tired of arguing with everybody, first Amy, then my dad..." he sounded irritated  
"NO! Ephram, I want to talk about it _now_!" she completely changed subjects, "I thought you wanted to be together...Why are you running away!"  
"I'M NOT RUNNING AWAY!" he snapped as his eyes widened at this remark, "why would you even think that! I want to be in your life, I wouldnt do that to you! This has nothing to do with skipping out or whatever you're thinking!"

Madison broke down and cried over the phone, "how would I know that, Ephram, you haven's spoken to me much in the past two weeks! For all I know you _are_ planning on skipping out!"

"oh my god! You're paranoid!" he tried to calm down and took a deep breath, "stop crying please!" he told her how he was feeling, "honestly, I have thought about skipping out, just picking up and running away to another state and getting away from everything or something because I'm only 17 and I have my whole life ahead of me!"  
"I DO TOO, EPHRAM! I didn't ask for this!"

"LET ME FINISH!" he yelled into the phone

"Why are you telling me this!" she cried as she wiped away a tear from her eyes.

"Even though I've thought about it and have actually packed my bags at least once or twice, I couldnt bring myself to do that. I couldnt do that to you! You want to know what kept me from doing it?"

no answer

"I'll tell you what kept me from doing it..._you_ are what keeps me here, Madison! Dont you see, I love you so much and I could never do that to you! I'm excited to watch our lives unfold together but of course I'm scared, that's what makes it so exciting!" he took a deep breath, "I'm sure you already figured it out, but I'm jealous of Jay, I dont know why, I just am and that is why I wasnt around."  
"You need to talk to me, Ephram, when something is bothering you otherwise I wont know what is!" she wiped away the last of her tears, "I love you Ephram."

"do you mean it?" he said with a smile that she could feel over the phone.

"yeah" she chuckled, "yeah I mean it."

"I'm sorry, Madison...I love you too...I'll see you soon." and the two hung up. Ephram's spirits were raised since he had been down in the dumps for the last several days. She was right afterall, when things bothered him he would keep to himself and he needed to work on it. These two were definitely taking it slow. He'd only slept over at Madison's place once since they've been back together and he slept on the couch. He didnt want to mess anything up like he had the first time. Of course the two were going to have arguments but it wouldnt change the fact that they love each other and would walk to the end of this earth for each other.

(A/N; this chapter was fun to write, sorry I couldnt make it longer though. I'm starting to really get rolling so hopefully you will like the next upcoming chapters!)


	12. tis the day

Classes started early for Ephram in January. Things were getting so hectic with Madison and getting ready for the baby to be born within the next couple weeks that he barely got any sleep. He loved it though, spending as much time as he could with her was all he could ask for. They were best friends and just being with her made him smile. They always made each other laugh.

"Did you know you are the most beautiful person in the world?" he said one day as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

She laughed, "I'm fat Ephram, I've gained about 18 pounds and about 7 of it came from this 'thing' inside me."

He tilted his head, "Well just think, when the baby is born then you'll lose 7 pounds just like that" and he snapped his fingers, "I'm so excited!" he smiled happily

"Me too" she smiled back before giving him a sweet kiss.

Not even the beginning of the third day of classes went by when he was sitting in the middle of his class playing with his pen trying to keep himself awake from this boring lecture when his pager went off. His body jerked since the pager was on 'vibrate' in his pocket and it jolted him a bit. He pulled it out quickly and as soon as he figured out the message he stood up avidly and bolted for the door, almost tripping over the chair in his path.

"Where are you going, Mr. Brown!" his teacher asked quickly and surprised

Ephram caught himself and danced around the other desks and chairs to get to the door as his backpack was flailing wildly around, he waved the pager and without looking back yelled, "I'm having a baby!" and he was out the door, down the hall and in his car on his way to the hospital in less than 7 seconds. The whole class erupted with laughter at the way Ephram said it. When the laughter died down, muffled conversations could be heard all throughout the room.

Somebody asked, "was he kidding? Whose baby?"

Amy, who happened to be in the class, said softly, almost bitterly, "Ephram's girlfriend is having a baby."

Somebody else could be heard, "Since when did Brown have a girlfriend?

Another voice said, "Damn, that boy's getting more action than I am!"

Finally the teacher interrupted, "okay, back to the material being studied please!" and with that everybody sighed and complained but managed to get back to the task at hand.

Halfway to the hospital about 20 minutes away Ephram was speeding and managed to get pulled over by a cop. His head was spinning and everything was happening so fast.

"Know why I stopped you son?" asked the cop as he took off his glasses

"I was speeding" replied Ephram quickly, "my fiance is having a baby right now and I want to get there quick! Listen" he said as he just thought of something, "how about you follow me and let me speed the rest of the way there then give me a ticket? Please, officer... Chesnut" he read the cop's name tag, "I really cant miss this! I need to be there! You can even take me to jail after the whole delivery if you want to, just please let me go now!"

The cop thought for a brief second and smiled, "you got it, son. I'll get you there safely" and he hurried his way back to his cruiser, put on his sirens and lights and sped towards the hospital. Ephram couldn't believe it, a cop was actually helping him. And he could hardly keep up with the cop since it was going faster than Ephram would have thought.

Before he realized it, he was parked and running for the emergency room where he stopped at the desk, "Madison Kellner, where is she!" he said out of breath

"are you a relative?" asked the nurse

Ephram thought for a second then smiled, "I'm her fiance, we're having a baby!"

Indifferently the nurse said, "congratulations. She's in the delivery room on the second floor, you cant miss it." and with that Ephram went off running again, not noticing the cop following him with a smile.

When he made his way up there he was surprisingly met by Nina.

"She's okay, she's doing fine" she smiled as she greeted him, "she wants you to be apart of this so go through there" she pointed to swinging doors that lead to the delivery room, "and get a gown on, the doctors will help you from there."  
Surprisingly Bright was there too with a cigar, "these babies are waitin' for ya" he smiled. Ephram didnt know what to think, was he dreaming? His head was still spinning when he made his way through the double doors, everything was happening so quickly.

"Who are you?" Nina asked confused as she looked at the cop standing next to her with a slight smile on his face.

"Ah, just waiting to give that boy a ticket. He was criminally speeding to get here but I figure since he's having a kid then I'll just give him a ticket rather than arrest him."

"Aren't you nice" replied Bright as he played with one of the cigars.

Before he knew it, Ephram was in the delivery room with Madison.

The delivery was quick and before he knew it he was in another room with Madison waiting for their baby. "I'm so happy!" erupted Madison as she sat up.

Ephram couldnt help but hug her and bury his face into her neck and just hold her as he sat on the bed with her.

"This has been a perfect day, ever since I got the page its all been going on fast forward. If I wasn't sure, I'd think I was dreaming."

With that, Madison pinched his arm, and he winced as he grabbed his arm, "what was that for!"

Madison laughed, "you're not dreaming." and she bit her lip.

He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight, "we're parents! I'm a daddy!"

"I'm a mommy!"

Just then the nurse came in with their newborn baby. The two just gazed at the child and instantly fell in love. As Madison held the baby, she looked at Ephram who was sitting beside her, "Trenton or Sacha?"

(A/N; this was a fun chapt to write, so, which name should I pick? Trenton or Sacha? Thanks everybody for the support and reviews, they mean a lot! Remember, reviews mean more updates!)


	13. connections

As Madison held the baby, she looked at Ephram who was sitting beside her, "Trenton or Sacha?"

Reaching out to touch the baby, all he could say was, "he's got my mouth...he's so beautiful..."

A few minutes later Nina and Bright came gamboling into the room. Not long after they entered, the cop that Ephram completely forgot about came into the room too, still smiling.

"Now that's one cute baby" the cop said as he tried not to smile.

Madison looked from the cop to Ephram with a confused look upon her face as she squinted to try to figure out if she should know this person. Ephram saw this look and chuckled, "Well, officer Chesnut, I appreciate that you let me have this experience, it meant a lot." then he looked at Madison and explained the situation to her. She was too busy tracing her baby's face with her fingers to hear much of what Ephram had to say about the cop.

The cop actually decided not to write Ephram a ticket and went on his merry way, whistling his way down the hall.

Ephram was overcome with joy that he couldn't help but hug his friend, Bright, whom he hadn't seen since the beginning of September.

"Dude, dude, the cigars, don't wanna break 'em now" he said with a smile as he showed Ephram the cigars, "they're _indiocentric"_

Nina, who was standing next to Madison, put her hand on her forehead and tried not to laugh, then she said, "_idiosyncratic_, Bright!" then she laughed, "He's been using that word all day today, always in the wrong context."

Not paying much attention, Bright replied as he was still playing with the cigar, "my girlfriend loves little kids for some odd reason so if you guys ever need a babysitter, you know who to call" and he puffed out his chest as he raised his eyebrows.  
"I've missed you, man" Ephram said happily with a slight smile on his face.

"Hey, can I borrow two dollah" Bright said, "there's a vending machine with my name written all over it" he smiled.

Nina gave him the money, "I'll go with you so you dont get lost." then she looked at the other two, "Congratulations Ephram, Madison. You'll be great parents."

and she was out the door with Bright in tow.

Ephram sat next to Madison and his beautiful baby boy. As he was playing with his baby's hand, he asked Madison, "Did you know those two were coming?"

She bit her lip as she smiled, "I got connections."

Ephram kissed her sweetly, then joked, "so...Floyd or Trenton or Sacha?"

"Floyd? Ephram, stop with the Floyd" laughed Madison as she looked at her baby boy.

"That could be his middle name" joked Ephram as he tilted his head and gazed at both Madison and the baby. This was his life now and everything, at that moment, was perfect, nothing could ruin it.

"So are we going to let your dad in on the news of his grandson?" except that, thought Ephram

"Lets try to keep this a happy thoughts day, Madison, please" he said trying to sound convincing. And they both dropped the subject. He continued, "So I was thinking that when I go back to school for in a couple weeks then Khaki and Yanu said they would help you out while I am gone."

This was news to Madison, "what do you mean 'in a couple weeks' Ephram?" she looked at him squinting her eyes trying to figure out why he said that.

"Dont look at me like that" chuckled Ephram, "I figure I only have one final out of all my classes and dont necessarily need to be to those classes every week." he smiled and joked, "besides, 'Josh' is my teacher for one of my electives and he's cool with it."

Madison looked surprised, then laughed, "at least my connections back in _freshman year_ are helping you out, now!"

Ephram kissed her sweetly, "dont worry, we'll be fine."

Madison whispered, "I love you, Eprham." and he whispered it back before kissing her again.

(A/N; granted this one was pretty dern short, which just means I'll be putting out another chapter before the end of the week! YEA!)


	14. facing reality

(A/N; yes, yes, I got your comments about the name, in which it will be revealed in this here chapter. Sorry to those who dont like the name, but I've already used the ones suggested in other fics of mine.......Read and Review, it makes me happy!)

The next few days Ephram didnt go to class at all, he was staying at Madison's to help out with their son. He was such a good baby, hardly cried, and when he did, then once he got what he needed he'd stop crying and go back to sleep. He didn't seem to like to be held too much, but the new parents didn't seem to concerned.

One day while the baby was asleep, and Madison was waking up from taking a nap, there was a knock on the door. Ephram went to open the door, and the wind was knocked out of him when he opened the door to see the last person on earth he ever thought he'd see; his father.

Ephram was speechless, just stood there with his mouth hanging open and his hand on the door, not sure what to make of the whole situation. Why would Andy Brown be here of all places, was he lost? Was he going to freak out on his son once again? Ephram seemed to be in a daze, just standing there looking at his father with his mouth slightly open, not sure of what to say.

"Nina told me about your " it sounded as though he had practiced those words over and over, "...I was...ju, uh, just wondering if I could see my grandson."

"Excuse me?!" Ephram said with a disgusted look upon his face, "_now_ you want to be apart of my kid's life! You who shunned what I was doing for 6 months, you who didn't speak to me because I made the wrong choice?!"  
Andy frowned, "I'm sorry, Ephram...I thought I was doing the right choice, but I want to make it right now..." he tried to smile.

"Well, I'm sorry too, because of what you did, you'll never see your grandson!"

Just then Madison came into view and saw Andy standing there, which took her breath away. She didn't want these two fighting for the rest of their lives, he said he was sorry and he sounded sincere. Before Ephram could shut the door in his father's face, Madison broke in, "Hi Dr. Brown! Good to see you!"

Ephram was blown away, he just stood there as Madison opened the door wider and welcomed Andy as she asked him to come in.

Andy forced a smile, trying to catch his son's eye as he made his way into the apartment.

Madison smiled, although she could more than feel the tension between them she tried to make the best of it.

"You look good..." Andy said awkwardly.

"Well Dr. Brown-" she started

"Call me Andy" he said nodding his head, "we're...uh, we're family now."

Madison smiled and nodded, "alright...Andy...Trenton is sleeping right now" she couldnt help but tear up as she showed him to the baby's room.

Ephram, still blown away, couldnt do much of anything right now. All he could do as he watched them disappear into the baby's room was stand there with the front door still open. How could his father do that? Just try to walk right back into his life like that? Ephram seemed to resent his father even more. He tried to figure out why Madison was doing what she was doing, but he just couldnt understand it.

Meanwhile, Trenton was sleeping soundly in his crib as Andy was looking at him from the end of the crib.

There was silence in the room, then Andy looked at Madison, "I'm sorry...I never should have done what I did..." he had a sad look upon his face, as if it pained him to think of what he had done in the past.

"It's okay, I understand why you felt as though you had to do it..." she tried to smile but couldnt, "Ephram is much wiser than you give him credit for, Dr. Brown...I mean...Andy..."

"I know that now...I just didn't want to lose him so I acted out of selfishness..." he shrugged his shoulders, "I ended up losing him anyway..."

"He'll come around." just then Trenton stirred, "just like this little guy" she said as he opened his eyes. Madison picked him up and held him, then asked Andy, "would you like to hold your grandson?"

As Andy took his grandson in his arms, he said, "I'm...uhm, I'm kinda new at this"

Madison smiled, "so are we...only being parents for two weeks now..."

The two chatted for a little while longer before Andy figured it was time to leave, he didnt want to impose on his son any longer than he had to. Madison told him that she would talk to Ephram, see if she couldnt get him to talk to his dad and work out their problems, but Andy, knowing his son, told her it would be difficult.

Madison put Trenton back in his crib to let him sleep then walked Andy to the door and said goodbye to him. All the while Ephram was in the kitchen, sort of hiding out, which caused a concern for Madison because just couldnt understand why Ephram was holding on to what his father did.

She went into the kitchen where Ephram was hovering over a school book; upside down nonetheless, since he was too overwhelmed to even see what he was doing. He looked up briefly then went back to pretending to read since he knew they were going to have a talk about what just happened. Madison pulled a chair up next to him, gently closed his book as she said softly, "we need to talk..."


	15. immature brats

(A/N; yes, yes, I know, it's been a while since my last update. But then again, who would blame me, I only had three reviews! It's the support system that brought me back with a new chapter sooner than I was actually thinking I would come out with one. (you know who you are, and I appreciate it!) thanks, please review! If I dont get at least 5, then I wont update for another month. Lol)

Madison pulled a chair up next to him, gently closed his book as she said softly, "we need to talk..."

Ephram sighed and sat back in his chair, "about what?" although he already knew what they needed to talk about.

"you _know_ what...why dont you just forgive your father, give him the benefit of the doubt?" she asked as she leaned towards him

"are you kidding?" he looked at her as though she had three heads, "I'm blown away that you've forgiven him for what he tried to do to you...to us." he shook his head, "I just dont think I can do that. I can't."

"He apologized Eph...It was something that happened, and it's something that you just have to get over. Dust yourself off and keep going. He knows what he did was completely wrong and unjust and he's trying to make it right."

Ephram frowned as he thought for a second. He placed his hand over Madison's which was on the table, and he just looked at their fingers as he interwined them, not saying anything. He tilted his head, "I dont know...I jus, uhm...I just think it will take time." he sort of chuckled out of frustration as he placed his head on the table, thinking still. Madison combed her fingers through his hair. After a little while, she whispered in his ear and joked, "just think of how the kids at school are going to react when they find out you had a baby!" she kissed his head then sat back up. Ephram was laughing as he looked up at her, "that's not funny! Not only will I be the laughing stock as I am now, but I'll be the laughing stock with a kid!" he imitated a bully at school, " 'hey, there goes Brown, ya think he'll be investing in the 6 year plan now that he's got a kid' " Madison couldnt help but laugh at Ephram's impression. This helped lighten the mood.  
They heard over the baby monitor Trenton making baby noises so they decided to gaze at their son. As they were walking down the hall, Madison tried to trip Ephram, which made him playfully push her, which then made her bearhug him and the two accidentally fell to the floor, trying very hard not to laugh and wake their child, not that it would have mattered anyway since the loud crashing sound of two adult bodies hitting the floor was enough to shake the entire room and wake up anybody withn a certain radius. The two, tangled together, tried to lay still for a few seconds without laughing to see if they woke up their child and when the coast was clear, Madison buried her face into Ephram's neck and started laughing, "just like old times, we're acting like immature brats"

Ephram tried to whisper without laughing, "yes, but the only difference this time is we are immature brats with a _baby_."

As Madison helped Ephram off the floor, she said, "Perhaps Trenton will be the mature one out of the three of us."

"We certainly have plenty of time to figure that out."  
Madison chuckled, "what is, the rest of our lives, Bob!" which made Ephram laugh and put his arm around her as the two entered Trenton's room. Trenton was still making baby noises every so often then stirred not too long afterwards since it was time for his feeding. It was like clockwork with this kid, no surprises, just predictable. The new parents had it pretty down pat and always tried to do things together. Madison would feed the baby, Ephram would burp him and get spit-up on, then the two would take turns rocking the baby back to sleep.

That night, the two went to bed, and Madison led Ephram to her bedroom and the two just cuddled for most of the night. She traced his face with her fingers. Just being in each other's arms was a beautiful thing since they didn't really have that much time together anyway. Ephram's arms were wrapped around her and one of her hands was on his chest as they fell asleep. They needed to be together, even if it was just in the physical sense of being there, not necessarily the sexual part. They made a vow, anyway, that even if the attraction was there, as it was all the time, they wouldn't sleep together until after they got married. It would make things that more pleasureable when if finally did happen. It made them look forward to the future and their lives together, getting to watch this beautiful baby boy that they created, grow up.


	16. just like you

(A/N; now, you just have to love Couriro, she rocks my world! I'm sure at least a couple of you probably never even read my fics until she said to, which makes me appreciate her even more. smile YEA, I'm back to update, and hopefully you like what you read! Them there reviews are nice as well and thanks for all the support, you all are so great!)

The next few days at school went easier than Ephram would have thought. Not too many wisecracks were made and people he barely knew were talking to him as if they had known him forever. As he was at his locker before one of his classes, Amy came walking up to him and bumped her hip to his, "hey you, how's life." she smiled

"what?" he looked around, "you're actually talking to me now?"

"shut up, Ephram."

He chuckled, "everything is good." then beamed as he started talking about his son, "you'll have to meet Trenton one of these days. It's the most amazing thing, having a child." he looked at her, "no-not that I'm saying you-you should uhm run out and have a child or anything," he shrugged his shoulders, "I'm just saying...you know, for future reference."

Amy chuckled, "I'll keep that in mind, Ephram", she said softly, "yeah, Bright told me that you said you'd let him and his girlfriend babysit. That's pretty cool. I'd like to meet your son, Ephram." she smiled as she touched his arm.

He laughed as he shut his locker, "I never told Bright I'd let him _babysit_! Are you kidding? I'd trust Delia before Bright." which made Amy laugh as well. He looked at her, then asked, "how are we?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "okay I guess..."

"You know I'm here for you, Amy. Always will be. Nothing's changed that much..." he chuckled, "I only have a newborn son...and Madison and I are getting married next year." he smiled at the thought.

"Invite me to the wedding" she said as the two walked to their next class. She couldnt help but think as she kept taking glances at him, _since there is no possible way we'll ever be together now. Funny how things always keep us apart..._

As they were walking, a kid who's been held back once was walking passed them and smiled at Ephram, "looks like I wont be the only one held back this year!" and everybody around them laughed, except Amy and Ephram.

Just then another kid yelled, "At least he'll have an excuse you neanderthal!" it was Wendell, of all people, which shocked everybody and they went on with their own business.

Ephram looked at Amy and sarcastically said, "who said anything about being held back? Why am I going to be held back?" Amy chuckled as she shifted the books in her arms.

"Hi guys" Wendell said happily as he walked them to their class, "news travels fast ya know." he laughed, "by the end of that day when you left Ephram, everybody was talking about you! I mean, even the cool kids, which is amazing." he looked at Amy, "no offense."

she just gave him a strange look.

A few voices could be heard throughout the halls, a few people even said, "Congratulations, Brown" which sort of surprised him.

One guy even invited him to a party, which was shocking all in itself since barely anybody even knew Ephram, or liked him for that matter. It was a small school afterall, and it was as if he was just as popular as Amy, just in a different way.

Before they got to the class, Wendell said, "You're God in some people's eyes, man. This whole baby thing has changed your life."

"duh" Amy said as she walked into class.

As they got seated and the bell rang, their teacher came into class, surprised to Ephram, "Well, welcome back Mr. Brown, we missed you."

Ephram tried not to blush as everybody looked his way.

Then the teacher tried to make a joke, "Don't come into my class having excuses that the baby kept you awake all night and that's why you dont have the homework or that's why you're tired" but only Ephram got what he was saying and he chuckled, which made everybody that more confused.

During the school week, since Everwood was over an hour away from where Madison lived, then Ephram stayed, reluctantly, at his dad's. For some reason, it didnt feel like home any more, but to take up his time he tried to get as many hours as he could at the music studio. While he was at his dad's during the week, then Khaki and Yanu helped Madison out with Trenton a couple days a week since they didnt live too far from each other. Trenton seemed to love Yanu's dread locks, and played with them as often as he could.

Bright visited Ephram at work since he was in the area. Ephram said as he looked up from what he was doing and smiled, "What are you doing here, man"

"Hey dawg, my sister misses you, you know." he said as he leaned on the counter

Ephram shook his head, "as I said, what are you doing here?"

"Cant I just visit one of my really good friends and chitchat?" he smiled

"no" Ephram said simply, "what's up your sleeve?"

Bright took a deep breath, "my sister is moping around again! You should take her out, hang out with her, do _something_ to cheer her up."

Ephram looked at him strangely, "I _can't_..."

"Why? I mean, Madison can take care of little Trenton for one day."

Ephram shook his head, couldnt believe what he was hearing, "hello!? He's my kid too, Bright! I'm not one to shrug off my responsibilities."  
"Why'd you break up with Amy anyway?"

"Why are we having this conversation?!" Ephram asked desperately, "besides, she broke up with me, remember. Plus I'm with Madison. Will you just get off the subject please? Why do you always have to start things?"  
"I'm not startin' anything" Bright replied as he was playing with one of the small instruments, "just curious." he smiled, "so are you going to that senior dance the high school is putting on?"  
"Are you even listening to me Bright? What are you on?!" he took a deep breath, "I have to get back to work to make money for my child and my _fiance_."

"Fine, fine, be that way" Bright said as he started to head out the door, "I'll see you later."

It seems that Bright has always had a way to stress out Ephram, which made Ephram sort of smirk. Why did Bright visit him at work out of the blue to talk about Amy? Is Amy okay? By the end of the day, instead of thinking of Amy, he couldnt help but think of Madison and couldnt wait to see her and their son. Put a smile on his face as he finished work that day.


	17. what to say

(A/N; sorry for the delay in posting, time has certainly gotten away from me this summer, but hopefully with school starting back up and stuff then I'll have more time to write! I have a great idea in the making so hopefully I can get it out soon. Thanks to all you loyal Everwoodian fans, its much appreciated! You know the deal, read and review!)

One day Ephram got to the apartment with half a dozen roses and a sweet, sentimental card, just telling her how much Madison meant to him. He knocked on the front door and put his finger over the eye hole so nobody could look out. Madison gave Trenton to Khaki, who flew him around the room as if he were superman. Madison opened the front door and there stood Ephram with a slight smile on his face and the roses in his hand.

She looked at him surprised, half-smiling, "what's the occasion, Ephram?"

He kissed her sweetly, "Do I have to have an occasion to dote upon the love of my life, the mother of my baby, my best friend?"

"Of course not" she said as she wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"I just missed you, that's all." he said with a smile and looked at her as though he was seeing her for the first time in a long time, which was sort of true. He looked at her like the time he first realized he loved her. When they hugged, he held on just a little bit longer than normal, then kissed her neck softly before they pulled away.

Everybody congregated in the living room, then Ephram asked, "Has Trenton had his daily tummy time?" he asked as he held his son and kissed him hello.

"What in the world is tummy time?" asked Yanu as he swung his dreads in front of Trenton's face.

Madison laughed, "tummy time, Yanu, is when we put Trent on his stomach." she absent-mindedly said, "they say it will help him learn to crawl."  
Khaki smiled, "but he's only two months old, he's just barely able to do much of anything right now."

"We like to get a head start." joked Ephram as he sat his baby on the floor, his little legs out in front of him, then let go of him to see if he would sit by himself. Of course, though, Trenton fell sideways just as quick as he was let go, but Ephram caught him. When Ephram balanced his son, he let go of him again, this time Trenton started leaning backwards, but Ephram caught him again.

Yanu looked at this activity with intrigue, then asked, "what are you doing now?"

Ephram just looked up and smiled, then went back to playing with his son.

Madison said, "Ephram's been in this phase for about a week now, where he's trying to get Trent to balance himself without support." she laughed, "I've tried to tell him that it wont work for another few months, but Eph is persistent. It's like a game to him." and everybody laughed.

After a while, Yanu and Khaki decided to leave, they had things to do. While Ephram was still playing with his son, without looking up since Madison was still in the same room, he said, "Bright came into the store the other day"

"oh yeah, what did he want?" she asked as she sat down next to him.

"Just said that Amy was feeling depressed and apparently she'd become 'happy' again if I hung out with her."

Madson thought for a moment, but Ephram then asked, "would you mind if I hung out with her? I mean, brought her over here to meet Trenton or something?"

Madison chuckled, "Ephram..." she looked at him, "have you been out in the sun too long or something? That'd be like me asking you if Jay could come over and _hang out_ for a bit. The whole 'ex' thing is what complicates the whole thing."

Ephram threw himself backwards in a playful, dramatic way, and moaned, "That's completely differeeent" he exaggerated the last word as though to sound like he was talking about another issue.

Madison looked at him, "explain that to me, Ephram." she smiled out of amusement as she calmly looked at her unattended son who was leaning ever so slightly and was about to fall over until she smacked Ephram's arm and motioned toward their son. As Trenton was about to tip over completely, Ephram saved him from falling on his face. He picked up his son and placed him gently, in a sitting position, between Madison and himself, trying to change subjects or just skirting around the issue without saying anything.

Still amused, Madison replied as she took Ephram's chin in her hand, "Explain to me, Ephram how my hanging out with Jay is completely different than you hanging out with Amy?"  
He thought for a brief second then knew he was defeated and said, "It's not?"

"Is that a question or an answer?"  
"Okay then," he began, "what if I just hung out with her for a few hours outside."  
Madison shrugged her shoulders, "Ephram, I dont care, it's completely up to you since she's your friend, not mine. I wouldn't make you choose."

Ephram raised an eyebrow, "Oh, what, and I would? How can you say that! I mean, you already know that I wouldn't want you to hang out with Jay, but I don't think I'd make you actually choose?!"

"Lets not start arguing please, and thats not what I meant." she said as she picked up her son who had tipped over onto her lap.

"Nobody's arguing here, Madison, I'm just curious, that's all." he tried to sound convincing, "I mean, I have no problem with Jay...I-uhm, uh wouldn't mi-mind if you went an-and hung out with him." the last part sounded forced.

Squinting her eyes, she smirked, "yes you would and you know it, dont give me that. He's probably the basis for most of our agruments and fights, of which I think you seriously need to get over."  
Ephram gave her puppy dog eyes since he knew she was right but didnt want to say it.

Then she replied with a grin, "I have an idea...why don't we invite both Jay and Amy over here for dinner one night to see if we are both over our jealousies." she flipped her hair slightly, "I mean, it'll be good for us, like therapy or something."  
Ephram chuckled, "we dont need therapy!" he took a deep breath, "I dont know...them and us in the same room together for a certain amount of time? Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. Plus, we'd sort of be using them for some sick pleasure or something." Saying that only made Madison laugh because she hadnt thought about it that way.

"Perhaps it would be good in a way..." he thought for a second as he played with the toes of his son who had fallen asleep on Madison, "I mean...it could only break us apart or bring us closer together and make our bond even stronger."  
Madison leaned over and kissed him sweetly on the lips, "my thoughts exactly."

After the two put Trenton down in his crib they planned out this 'event' and decided it should happen sometime next week. Of course, out of the two, Ephram was the one who had the reservations about the whole thing since he despised Jay and always said stupid things while he was around, and Amy, well, that relationship has always been complicated. Besides, Amy and Madison didnt really know each other, so getting them together would be an interesting sight. But, as Ephram figured out, Madison wasnt the type to jump to conclusions or freak out about small things like Ephram.

As they went to bed that night, Madison couldnt help but throw her arms around his neck and kiss him sweetly, then she said with a smile, "we dont have to go through with the dinner, it was sort of a joke to see how you would react."

Ephram put his arms around her waist, "I think it will be good for me...to get over the hang-ups that I have of Jay..." he rolled his eyes, "and all that sort of stuff."

Madison laughed before getting into bed.


	18. something wicked this way comes

"Hey you, what are you doing this weekend?" asked Ephram over the phone to Amy as he was at work on his break.

"I dont think anything right now, why?" she asked

"Well, I was, uh...I was wondering if you'd like to come over to Madison's place on Saturday or something to have dinner. She's having a friend over and I think it'd be awkward for me, so--"  
Amy cut in, "Ephram, I think your belt is too tight and cutting off the circulation to your brain!"  
Confused, he asked, "Why?"  
"If you dont want to feel awkward then why dont you just go out for the night"  
"Because I have a two month old son that needs to be taken care of, that could be the reason, yeah, I think that's it." he said rolling his eyes at Amy's response.

"Wouldnt it be awkward anyway having me, your ex girlfriend or whatever we were, and Madison in the same room? I dont think it would turn out good."

Ephram thought for a second, he still couldnt believe he was doing this and he sort of chuckled inside thinking how crazy Madison was. He then said, "Please do this, for me?"

Amy finally agreed, reluctantly, but she did.

Meanwhile, Madison was on the phone with Jay and it went smoothly. Ever since they had started working with the same people then Jay asked Madison to dinner at least once a week. She figured this would be easy since the two go way back and they were just friends afterall. Of course Jay was a jerk, but that was his nature. He wanted to see the baby too so this was a good excuse.

That night when Ephram went back to the apartment, he and Madison confirmed plans and realized that they were actually going to go through with this foolish event.

"Just so we're clear" Ephram said with a smile, "this is completely stressing me out."  
"You're handling your composure well" chuckled Madison as she handed Trenton to Ephram.

"I cant even believe we decided to do this, do you realize how foolish and weird and awkward and stressful and disastrous this is going to be?"  
"You missed fun and exciting."

Ephram stopped walking, "that's not funny."

"Oh but it was" replied Madison as she gave him a sweet kiss.

Saturday came around and the two prepared all day, taking turns taking care of Trenton. At one point Ephram fell asleep in the chair holding Trenton who sneezed every so often, which made Madison wonder if he was coming down with a cold or something.

A few hours later there was a knock on the door just as the two put Trenton down for the night. Ephram went and answered it with Madison following behind him. When he opened the door he saw...Jay...who made his way through the door with a big smile on his face, handing Madison a half dozen roses and giving her a big hug, which made Ephram freeze in his tracks, he could be seen in the background with his mouth gaping open and squinting his eyes, trying to figure out if this was all actually happening. He was definitely surprised, you could say that!

"What are you doing?!" Ephram forced out

Not noticing Ephram, Jay continued to greet Madison before the two headed towards Trenton's room.

Not too long afterwards there was another knock on the door, it was Amy. She seemed to have found the place, no problems.

"Hey, glad you could make it." he tried to smile

"Didn't want to leave you hanging, but just so you know, I still think this is going to be a very weird experience."

Under his breath, Ephram said, "I second that..."

"So where is everybody?" she said as the two made their way into the kitchen.

"Trenton's room" Ephram replied, "you have to meet him, come on" he beamed as he showed Amy the way to Trenton's room, "we think he might be coming down with a cold or something."

After the very awkward moment of everybody gathered into Trenton's room, the food was finally ready and they all made their way to the kitchen, "this is a very nice place you have here, Madison" Amy said as everybody sat down.

Smiling, Madison replied, "Thank you Amy, I appreciate that. I had a little help" she glanced at Ephram.

Ephram replied, "Don't start, please." He then turned towards Jay, "So Jay, how are things with you?" he tried to sound polite but for some reason it all just seemed to come out condescendingly.  
"Real good, jailbait...I mean, Ephram." he grinned

Saying that Ephram couldnt help but want to say something but he stopped himself just before any words came out.

Jay continued, "Cant wait til Madison gets back to work, she's one of the best talent scouts this agency's got."  
"Thank you Jay" replied Madison as she looked towards Ephram.

"So Amy, where are you planning on going to school next year?"

Just then Jay realized he recognized Amy, and pointed his fork at her, "Hey, aren't you that Amy who dated Tommy?"

"Yeah she is" replied Ephram quickly

"Did I ask you, Brown?" Jay asked innocently with a sort of confused look upon his face as he looked from Amy to Ephram.

"Jay dont start" replied Madison

"Just tryin' to be friendly"  
"Are you sure you're not trying to be rude?" asked Ephram

"Ephram!" replied Madison.

Not even 10 minutes into the meal went by when disaster struck and everybody was arguing! Just then Madison said as she held up the baby monitor, "I think I hear the baby crying"

"I dont think so, I didn't hear anything" replied Ephram

"I did" replied Madison through gritted teeth, "I need your help in the baby's room Ephram"

The two got up from the table and made their way towards Trenton's room.

"What are you doing!? You did not hear the baby cry!" replied Ephram in a low but angry voice.

"This isnt going well!

"I'm trying!"

Madison was so angry that she couldnt help but laugh because all of this was stressing her out and she didnt think it would hit her as hard as it did.

"Why are you laughing!?" asked Ephram, this time through gritted teeth.

"Glad you can find humor out of all of this." Ephram took a deep breath as he closed his eyes and inhaled, "Okay...clean slate. Lets go back in there and try to start fresh." He turned around and Madison followed him, her hands on his shoulders, playfully squeezing his neck.  
"Sorry about that" replied Ephram as he sat down in his chair, "I didnt mean to snap at you Jay, I just had a long day at work."  
"no problem kid" he replied as he chewed his food.

The rest of the night went smoothly, Ephram and Madison had to only get up once to check on Trenton since he woke up and cried, this time for real.

When Amy and Jay left, Ephram couldnt help but say, "I still dont like him..."

Madison laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck as they sat on the couch "You did well the second half and I appreciate it."  
"How about we never do that again because otherwise I'd be forced to throw something at you" and he picked up a pillow and hit her in the face with it. Just as he tried to get away she grabbed onto his legs and fell to the floor, which in turn made him fall to the floor and he forgot that he had his keys still in his pocket.  
"Oooowwww!" he howled softly, "oh-my-god" he said in between breaths, "I feel as though I just cut off my leg! Or at least punctured a deep hole into it!"

Madison tried to stifle her laugh as Ephram complained and moaned. Just then the baby could be heard over the monitor, he was making little noises.

Madison helped Ephram up and half carried him, half dragged him into the baby's room all the while he still moaning, saying, "I'd walk but I think I lost all feeling in my right leg. Start calling me Gimpy because I'm going to need crutches!"

The little happy fun fest quickly ended when they noticed that Trenton's lips were blue and there was throw up all around him. Madison quickly called 911, "My baby isnt breathing!"

(DUN DUN DUUUUN, read and review please!)


	19. nightmare come true

The little happy fun fest quickly ended when they noticed that Trenton's lips were blue and there was throw up all around him. Madison quickly called 911, "My baby isnt breathing!"

The ambulance came and gone, and Madison and Ephram were in the ER, just waiting, they could do nothing at this point and they were so helpless. Ephram tried to be strong as all Madison could be heard saying was, "He's only two months old...he's only two months old. I'm a good mother, aren't I? How could I not have seen this coming?" He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly, it was all he could do to keep from crying himself. Khaki showed up with a somber look upon her face and held onto Madison as well. Ephram got up to go to the restroom, on his way he noticed a room with little kids playing inside with their parents. As Ephram stared, a nurse pointed out that that room was for kids who were too sick to go home, which made Ephram angry because right now he didnt know if his son was going to survive whatever it was he was going through.

Apparently he was gone longer than he thought, when he got back to where Madison and Khaki were, he was completely bewildered because his father was there, talking with one of the doctors.

"How's my son?" Ephram asked the doctor as he tried to ignore his father.

"He's in critical condition, we're doing the best that we can." and he turned around to leave, "We'll let you know the progress when we get it."

Andy tried to hug his son, but Ephram pulled away.

"What are you doing here!"

"I wanted to see if I could help..." replied his father

"What, now you want to help?! You just go from one extreme to the next, dont you dad, first you want to help by getting rid of Madison, now you want to help by trying to be the hero!" his voice quivered as he backed away.

"Ephram..." replied Madison as tears filled her eyes.

"You need to stop this right now" his father said, talking about how Ephram was treating him. Why would Ephram want to though, his father deserves it, doesnt he? This was Ephram's way of thinking of course.

This was too much for Ephram, so he turned and backed away towards the exit doors.

"What are you doing Ephram?" asked Madison as she took a step forward.

He raised up his arms and let them fall to his side as his eyes filled with tears, "I cant be here right now." and he turned towards the door, before he could leave, Madison cried "There is a sick little boy in there, and he needs both of his parents right now!"

Andy said softly, "Ephram, dont be irresponsible"  
This put Ephram over the edge, he glared at his father, "Too late for that, huh, dad! I'm only 17, I'm as irresponsible as they come! Didnt you know, I learn from the best!" Before he ran out the door he looked at Madison with a look upon his face as if to say, 'I'm sorry'.

Madison almost followed him, but Andy held her back, "Let him go," he said, "He'll be back, he just needs to be alone."

This made Madison break down and cry, because most of all, she needed him and he wasn't there for her...

About 20 minutes later the doctor came back out and everybody greeted him, "good news" he said, "Trenton is going to pull through." he paused, "the thing is though, we aren't quite sure what caused this to happen, we think it might have been a seizure, but that's all we can tell you at this time."

"Can I see him?" asked Madison with sad eyes.

The doctor nodded and she and Khaki followed the doctor to where little Trenton was. Andy stayed out in the waiting area, he didnt want to intrude.  
Trenton's body looked so helpless, so lifeless, laying in the little bed with wires all over his body.

Madison sat down in a chair, trying to take everything in when the doctor continued, "We're going to want to keep Trenton for the next couple days, take some tests and do some routine blood work, see if we cant figure anything out by then. He will pull through though, dont you worry about that."

All she wanted to do was touch her baby, hold him and protect him, but he seemed so fragile at this moment that she couldnt do it. All she could do was hold his tiny little hand and talk to him. It was right then that she realized how much she needed Ephram right now, and how much she needed his support and just to have him by her side. She kissed her son's hand before she and Khaki decided to head back to the waiting room.

When Madison regained her composure and went back to the waiting area, Andy suggested that she call Ephram on his cell phone to tell him the news. As much as she just wanted to kill Ephram right now, she did what Andy suggested.

Ephram found Amy who was still in Denver. When he rushed out of the hospital he called her right away because he needed somebody to talk to. They met at the nearby park, and the whole time Amy was consoling him as he cried on her shoulder.

"I'm a bad father, how could I not have seen this" he said as he wiped a tear from his eyes.

"You're not a bad father, Ephram" she said softly, "things like this happen, as bad as it sounds, things like this do happen." she paused and tried to make light of the situation, "plus, I dont think Madison would want you to say you're a bad father because then that would make her a bad mother and I think she'd have to hurt you for that."

Ephram half smiled.

Just as he was feeling better, his phone rang and it was Madison. He could tell because of the ring tone, the sound of his baby making baby noises, he got the idea from Chris Martin who did the same thing with his daughter, made Ephram want to cry again.

He ran out on Madison, how could he talk to her now? He just stared at it, trying hard not to cry as Amy replied, "Answer the phone, Ephram..."

All he could do was turn it off.

"You do realize, you're only making matters worse..."

Ephram could say nothing, all he could do was sit there.

"This is like a nightmare come true, and it just goes to show how irresponsible I am..."


	20. running around

"This just goes to show how irresponsible I am..." he said softly after awhile, "I mean...my son is in the hospital and I ran away! What if he dies and I'm not there. God, I wouldn't blame Madison for hating my guts."

Amy didnt know what to say, she just sat there with her arms around Ephram.

The two spoke for a little bit longer before Amy said, "since you took a cab to meet me, why dont I take you back to the hospital and you can be there for Madison and your son?"  
After a second to think about it, Ephram nodded his head, "yeah, its the right thing to do." he looked at her, "I messed up so bad, I need to make it right..." and the two got up and walked towards Amy's vehicle. As much as he felt as he let everybody down, he just had to go back and set things right, he had to face what he's scared of.

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Madison was so happy that Trenton was going to be okay that Khaki decided to take her out to see a late night movie, plus, it would get her mind off of Ephram who ditched her so suddenly. At first though, she didn't want to, she just wanted to stay with her son, what if something was to happen again? Going to a movie while her son was in the hospital didnt seem right. She figured it would be best, besides, just going home would probably make her more depressed since she'd be sitting around just thinking about him, and thinking about how angry she is at Ephram.

Andy calmed her as he told her it would be okay and that she needed to get her mind set right again. He also said, "I'll stay here in case Ephram does show up, then we'll call you and you two can work this out."

Madison went to say goodbye to her son and set off with Khaki soon afterwards. The movie the two decided to go see was a comedy, which Madison needed, and it started at 9:30pm. As they got to the theater, Madison reluctantly turned off her cell phone. "What if Andy should call? Oh my god, this was such a bad idea, what if something happens?"

Khaki tried to comfort her, "Andy knows what he's doing, doesnt he? Besides, he's a doctor himself, I dont think he would have told you to go see a movie if he felt something bad was going to happen."

"You're right...This should be good." she nodded, trying to convince herself, "We'll have fun, we need it right now." and in the back of her head she was thinking about Ephram and what he could possibly be doing while his son is in the hospital.

Amy dropped Ephram off at the ER. When he got the reception desk, he asked which room Trenton was in. Although there were no visitors allowed, they made an exception for Ephram since he was Trenton's father. As the doctor showed him to the room, he asked where Madison was. All the doctor said was, "she left with a friend of hers."

As soon as Ephram entered the room where Trenton was, and he saw all the wires his son was hooked up to, he broke down and cried. How could he have let this happen? He held his son's tiny hand, trying to hold back the tears that flooded his eyes. After a while he was able to calm himself and talk to his son as Madison had, "I'm so sorry buddy for leaving you. I promise - " he said as he choked, "I will never leave you again. You have to pull through, I need you. Your mother and I need you." and he thought to himself, 'I need your mother most of all right now, she gives me strength."

A familiar voice was heard in the doorway, "He's a tough little boy, he's going to be fine." and as soon as Ephram turned around and realized it was his father's voice, he couldn't act the way he had been doing for the last several months. He allowed his father to give him a hug, and he allowed himself to forgive his father for what he had tried to do. Hearing those words, 'he's going to fine' made Ephram cry happy tears as he hugged his father for the first time in almost a year. There was an unspoken bond that they shared right at that moment and nothing needed to be said.

He and his father decided to get a bite to eat before Andy dropped his son off at home...Madison's place. Ephram was still emotional, he couldn't eat. He just kept wondering about Madison.

"It's just..." he sighed, "I need to hold her, let her know I'm sorry. I love her so much, I want her to know that."  
"I'm sure she does know that, son." Andy said with a smile.

"I know, but...I-I want, I ju-just wa-want to hold her in my arms and tell her that because I screwed up so badly tonight." he shook his head, "I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted to kill me."

"Guess it doesnt help when her phone is turned off and you left yours in Amy's car."

A couple hours later, around midnight or so, Ephram decided to have his dad drive him home.

Madison wasnt there, which made Ephram wonder. This made him sad as well because he needed her, needed to touch her face. He was still so upset when he got home, all he could do was hang around in Trenton's room. It felt so weird not having him there. It felt so empty, like a piece of Ephram was missing. After a while he decided to sit in the corner near the crib in Trenton's room and hold the large stuffed animal that had been in Trenton's crib. He noticed his son's photo album and thumbed through it slowly. Not too long afterwards, he drifted off to sleep.

After the movie, Madison drove Khaki home, stayed a while then decided to head back home herself.

As she drove home, she couldnt help but think of Ephram. She turned her cell phone back on, hoping there would be a message from him. There wasnt. But there was a message from Andy; "Sorry to call so late" the message began, "Dont worry, Ephram went to the hospital but you had left already. I know this is none of my business, but I feel as though I should say something." there was a pause, "Ephram needs you and he loves you a lot. When you see him, go easy on him"

When Madison got home she slowly made her way to Trenton's room and was surprised to see Ephram sleeping propped up against the wall, holding the large stuffed animal in his arms and the baby book beside him. She couldnt help but smile and tear up at the same time as she watched him sleep. Every negative thing she felt before this moment was completely forgotten. She slowly walked up to him, then knelt down next to him and touched his face, "Ephram" she said as her eyes glistened with tears, trying to wake him up as she touched his leg.


	21. nothing else matters

**This chapter is RATED R, please don't read if you are under age or get easily offended! THANKS!**

**(A/N; also, as much as I like writing, I may be forced to end this chapter early since I'm not getting as many reviews as I would like. Six (6) at least is what I like to see, if I dont get that then the next chapter may be the last, which would suck since this fic has so much potential! (their wedding for one) READ AND REVIEW PLEASE!)**

When Madison got home she slowly made her way to Trenton's room and was surprised to see Ephram sleeping propped up against the wall, holding the large stuffed animal in his arms and the baby book beside him. She couldnt help but smile and tear up at the same time as she watched him sleep. Every negative thing she felt before this moment were completely forgotten. She slowly walked up to him, then knelt down next to him and touched his face, "Ephram" she said as her eyes glistened with tears, trying to wake him up as she touched his leg. He was startled awake, and surprised to see Madison sitting next to him on the floor in the dim-lit room. He looked up at her with a sort of panic-stricken look upon his face when he realized who it was, and all he could say was, "I'm so sorry."

Madison grabbed him and the two held each other as they cried together, "I dont care where you went Ephram or what happened, I dont care about any of that, all that matters is that Trenton is going to pull through."

Ephram gasped and pulled Madison to him, he couldnt help but tear up as he said, "I'm so sorry I ran off like that, I was just scared to death and angry and overwhelmed at the same time. I didnt mean to leave you. I love you so much, I need you."

The two sat together on the floor against the wall, Ephram's arms wrapped around Madison as her head was touching the side of his head. She then whispered, "make love to me, Ephram."

Ephram pulled away and looked at her. Her hair falling in her face, she looked so beautiful, even if she had been crying for the whole day. He didnt say anything, he didn't have to. Madison stood up and pulled him up with her and lead him slowly to the bedroom. It was like they were the only people in the world right now and nothing else mattered. Ephram half smiled as he leaned in slowly and eagerly kissed her, pulling her to him so there was no space between them.

Madison deepened the kiss as she and Ephram undid each other's belts. Madison sat on the bed as Ephram took off her shirt, then his. He pushed her back, then he slid on top of her, touching her stomach just slightly enough to make her shiver. He kissed her passionately as Madison ran her fingers through his hair. Her moans muffled by their intense kissing. They both wanted this, more than ever. They wanted each other just the same, and now they were to have each other. A sort of hunger they were both able to finally fulfill.

Madison rolled on top of him and straddled him. She took off her bra and lead Ephram's hands and placed them on her breasts. He cupped them and played with them as Madison leaned down and kissed his neck.

After a while he rolled on top of her and finally entered her, and they both moaned with pleasure. Madison arched her back, Ephram kissed her chest. They were one as they moved together. Not too long afterwards, Madison came and she let out a pleasurable moan. Ephram kissed her deeply as he pumped faster, harder. Finally he came as Madison did a second time.

It was as if they had made love to each other for the first time, it was so new, and perfect. Ephram collapsed beside Madison as he buried his face into her neck, kissing it, and caressing her face. They were both glistening with sweat as they lay together, breathing heavily.

Before they fell asleep, Ephram jokingly said, "so much for the vow." and Madison kissed him passionately, sliding her tongue into his mouth as she explored his lower back with her hands.


	22. little man

(A/N; definitely, thanks a lot for the reviews, they meant a lot! Since I dont want to make anybody cry then I will definitely continue the story! And you're all right, it doesnt matter how many reviews I get, just as long as I'm having fun. But then again, I do post so I can get opinions. Either way, thanks a ton!)

The next morning, Madison was awakened by little kisses on her collarbone from Ephram, who looked up and smiled at her when she ran her fingers through his hair. Her eyes still closed as Ephram sweetly kissed her forehead, "mmmm...last night wasn't a dream, you're right here beside me."

"I'll always be right here beside you."

Ephram lay back down on his pillow as Madison opened her eyes and propped herself up on her elbow to look at him. She just smiled at him, "last night was amazing, Ephram."

"Last night was beautiful." he said

"Ephram..." she chuckled, "you just said beautiful."

He grinned at her as he closed his eyes, "I'm feeling euphoric, don't ruin it."

"I'll make you feel euphoric" she replied as she placed her hand on his chest and continued to kiss him slowly, deeply.

Ephram whispered in between kisses, "as much as I would love to have a recap of last night, we can't"

Madison looked at him with a confused look upon her face, then Ephram gave her a look as if to say, 'how could you forget', "Trenton's coming home today, remember!"

"Oh that's right! My other favorite little man!"

"since when did I turn into a little man?"

"figure of speech, baby." she smiled as she kissed him again, then slid her body on top of him and moved just the right way to make Ephram's eyes roll back in his head as he moaned with pleasure. Madison smiled then slid off of him and headed towards the shower, leaving Ephram high and dry.

A few minutes later the bathroom door opened and then closed. As Madison was washing her hair, Ephram joined her in the shower. He was behind her and started kissing her neck, then helped soap up the rest of her body. She turned around, "I was hoping you'd join me" and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply, passionately. Ephram managed to pin her against the shower wall and pressed his naked body to hers. She moaned with pleasure.

Ephram stopped what he was doing then proceeded to wash his hair, this time leaving Madison high and dry. Madison couldnt help but laugh, "I cannot believe you just pulled that on me!"  
Nonchalantly, Ephram replied, "you did it to me first, I only had to return the favor."

Several minutes later they finished showering and got out and wrapped towels around them. As Ephram finished wrapping the towel around himself, he helped dry Madison off, who was wrapped in the large towel, by brushing her arms up and down. He stopped and looked into her eyes. He tilted his head and said, "do you realize how much I love you?"

Madison whispered, biting her lip as she leaned into him, "why dont you show me" and kissed him deeply. She opened her mouth and let Ephram's tongue in. He held her as she let out another muffled moan. This time she was the one to pull away, "what took us so long to get to this point?"

"I was scared of making mistakes" Ephram said as he put his forehead to hers, "...I love you, Madison...so much."

She smiled, "I love you too, Sweetie."

"Oh, plus the fact that we have a 2 month old son that takes up all of our time."

Madison laughed.

They finally got dressed, then went to the hospital to pick up their son, who was doing very well. The doctor said Trenton was doing better than he had thought, which was a good sign. After they got Trenton into the car, Madison decided to take him out of the carseat and sit him on her lap as Ephram drove home. He was back to his playful, curious little self, which calmed Madison down.

A couple days later Ephram went to school. He decided to stay with Madison and watch over Trenton on Monday so he skipped a day, but he figured he wouldnt be that far behind.


	23. proud of you

A couple months later, as he was sitting at the lunch table with Amy and a couple other kids, Amy asked him, "so what are you planning on doing when we graduate in two months, Ephram? I'm thinking of going to the state school a couple hours from here. Enough freedom, ya know, but close enough in case I want to come home."

He finished chewing his food, "you know...I haven't really thought about it..." he shrugged his shoulders, "I guess I havent had time." he thought for a second, "I may take a year off."

"What do you mean?" Amy asked

Ephram looked at her confused, "what do you mean, what do I mean?" he shook his head once.

"You cant take a year off! Why dont you go to that school in Denver, 'College of Contemporary Music'?"

"Why are you pushing this?" he asked innocently

"I'm not pushing anything" Amy said defensively, "I'm just saying you should have a plan once you graduate. It's like you're life is on hold."

Ephram straightened up and his face became hard, "and what would you know about my life, Amy? Do you know how stressful it is, having a four month old at home? My life revolves around him, if he gets sick then I miss school, that's how it works. It's day by day, not week by week or year by year like it used to be."

"I know, you dont have to get defensive."

"I'm not the one getting defensive, Amy!"

"lets not argue, please"  
Ephram raised up his arms as if to say, 'I didn't want to start in the first place.'

They were quiet for a few minutes before Amy asked, "so, how is Madison doing?"

Ephram pursed his lips, "do you really want to know?"

Amy's eyes widened, "I wouldnt have asked if I didnt want to know! Why are you being like this?"  
"sorry" he sighed, "I just thought...I dont know, forget it." then he said, "Madison's doing well. She's gone back to work, which is cool because she missed being away." he smiled, "she's got a lot of plans for the wedding, which isnt for the next several month, but you know how she is, she likes to get things planned to a T."

The bell rang, which meant there was about 10 minutes before the next class.  
As they were walking to class, Amy asked, "are you scared at all?"

"About what? The quiz today, damn right." he grinned

"That's not what I meant and you know it. Getting married at such a young age."

Ephram just half smiled, saying nothing, then went and found a seat in his class. Amy sat next to him, just looking at him.

Of course he was scared, why wouldn't he be? This is his whole life and everything around him is changing as quick as a heartbeat. But he's making the right choice and he knows it. He's got the love of his life standing beside him, and they have a child, a product of their love, he's got everything he needs. He knows, deep down, that he can handle this. They've gotten through difficult times and this will only make their bond stronger. It's a life commitment and he's ready for it.

Just before class started, he took out a piece of paper and slipped it to Amy. She was sort of confused as she tried to open it up discreetly. She smiled, then looked at Ephram and nodded her head after she read the words, "_Congratulations, Ephram. We are excited to welcome you to the College of Contemporary Music_"

In the middle of his class, the pager that Ephram completely forgot that he had, went off. It was in his bag and it started making little noises. He immediately pulled it out, trying not to draw attention to himself. Just as he pulled it out, his teacher managed to throw the attention on to him, "Mr. Brown, not having another baby are you?"

"Hope not!" he said as he slouched in his char, trying to draw the attention away from him. He felt himself get red in the face as 15 pairs of eyes looked in his direction.  
Ephram looked at the pager and read it. It read, "_Trenton says hi from mommy's work_" which made him smile. Just then, his teacher asked, "Mind sharing with the class what's so important?"  
Ephram smiled out of embarrassment, waved the pager slightly and said, "my son says hi." Everybody in the classroom laughed. After they all finishd their chuckles and side comments and focused on the teacher again, Ephram felt like crawling under a rock and hiding. Instead, he just slouched back in his chair as Amy glanced a smile at him.

Later that day, Ephram went to his dad's place. They were to have a family dinner, which was a long time coming. Delia was glad that she was going to have her family together again, even if it was for just one evening.

As his father was cooking for the evening, Ephram leaned on the counter, "You're actually cooking? Will we know what it is when it's put in front of us? And, most importantly, will we die from the taste?"  
"How'd you get so funny all of a sudden" joked Andy, "for your information, Nina gave me cooking lessons."  
"Wow, I didn't know that." replied Ephram as he looked at his father with a smile.

"There's a lot you don't know about, son" he said, pointing a knife at his son, "That's what'cha get for only living here part time."

"I'm glad you stopped sending the money, it shows that you actually think we're responsible now." he smiled.

"That's only because Madison sent back the last two checks I had sent." he chuckled, "she sent them in a letter. Sort of comical really." he stirred the noodles, "she wrote in the letter that she was only taking the other checks in the first place to get back at me. It was very philosophical, I admire that, since she seemed to put a lot of thought into it."

"What do you mean, philosophical, dad?" asked Ephram as he squinted his eyes.

His father just waved it off as he concentrated on the meal he was preparing.

Through dinner they kept asking about Trenton and how the little family was doing. At one point, Delia replied thoughtfully, "you know what, Ephram...I think I'm too young to be an aunt."

Ephram looked at her and chuckled, "Well, look at it this way...you're not the one taking care of a 4 and a half month old that takes up all of your time." he joked, "but, if you want the experience I'm sure Madison wont mind giving him to you for the day."  
Delia rolled her eyes, "That's okay, I'll leave the responsibilities up to you."

They all talked and joked throughout the dinner before Ephram figured he should leave before it got too late. His father gave him a hug and said, "I'm proud of you son", which actually amazed Ephram that he said nothing. Just smiled and wandered to his car. On his long drive back to Madison's all he could think about was what his father said.


	24. a little fun

THIS CHAPTER IS RATED R! PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU GET EASILY OFFENDED...

Authors Note SORRY it took me so long to write another chapter, its just that my inspiration is gone since Madison is gone, however...I figured I just got a bit of inspiration and thought I'd write another chapter or two, maybe not ending it but we'll see...Again, sorry to have taken so long—I love my fans! THANKS GUYS!

They all talked and joked throughout the dinner before Ephram figured he should leave before it got too late. His father gave him a hug and said, "I'm proud of you son", which actually amazed Ephram that he said nothing. Just smiled and wandered to his car. On his long drive back to Madison's all he could think about was what his father said.

It's been a while since Ephram had heard those words, he just wanted to share them with Madison. It was late when he got to Madison's and he figured she would probably be asleep. He actually found her on the couch sleeping with the baby monitor on her chest. He only chuckled as he took the monitor away and put it on the coffee table and knelt on both knees on the floor in front of Madison. He was admiring her beauty before he kissed her forehead. She made a little moaning noise, just enough to give Ephram an idea. She slyly smiled to himself as he looked Madison up and down. Why wake her when he can have a little fun with her? He put his hand on her face and began to kiss her slowly, gently touching her lips with his tongue. She moaned in his mouth. He stopped kissing her, and watched her sleeping facial expression change from a blank canvas to hot short breaths as his hand slid from her face, down her chest, across her stomach and onto her crotch. He was sure she would wake up any minute, but he was having too much fun to want to stop, so he began to rub his hand back and forth on her crotch through her jeans. Eprham then got brave, licked his lips and slipped his hand inside her pants and in between her legs. Madison was rather wet, and she moaned as she felt Ephram's hand on her wet pussy, which got Ephram a little excited. Madison was beggining to slightly move in her sleep. One of her hands, which was previously laying limp on her stomach, was now grabbing onto her shirt. Eprham slowly moved his fingers in between her lips, feeling her juices, teasing her. He stopped momentarily as Madison's hand grabbed on to his. At first he thought she was awake, but her breathing hadnt changed much, she was just moaning with pleasure. He could feel himself getting harder with every one of her moans.

He decided that she was wet enough to take two of his fingers, but only put a small amount of pressure inside of her to see what she would do. She gasped, then her hand pushed down on his hand. He couldnt help but chuckle for how turned on she was while asleep. He couldnt control himself anymore and pulled down her pants just enough so he could have full access to her beautiful cunt. He slowly traced his two fingers just outside her hole before plunging deeply inside of her. He didnt realize how turned on Madison was until he did that, as he pulled his fingers out Madison had an orgasm, which actually woke her up. She was surprised, but before she could say anything, Ephram plunged his fingers deep inside of her again and kissed her hard at the same time. He wanted her and he couldnt hold it back any longer! He took his other free hand and began tearing off her pants and underwear. Although she was tired she couldnt believe she was as turned on as she was and matched Ephram's hunger as she kissed him deeply and thrusted her hips foreward to meet the impact of his fingers. He was about to thrust a third finger inside of her but Madison reached for his hard cock and guided it to her hole. He positioned himself on top of her without breaking the deep kiss then slowly pushed himself inside of her as she clawed his back.

The two made passionate love for over an hour on the couch before surrendering and collapsing into each other's hot sweaty bodies. A few minutes later Madison ran her fingers through Ephram's hair and said breathlessly "well good evening to you too babe. That was hott"

"You're hott" Ephram whispered as he kissed her playfully.

"Lets go to bed" madison said as she pushed Ephram off of her and put the blanket around her to walk to the bedroom.

Before they drifted off to sleep, Ephram told her what his father had said. She was proud of him for being able to work this out and put her arm on his chest and her hand on his face. The two fell asleep in each other's arms as they listened to the raspy breaths of Trenton coming from the baby monitor.

A/N; I have the wedding of these two in my head, just not written down yet...I may skip a bit and just head to that scene...Hope all is well, sorry it took me so long to write another chapter


	25. wedding plans

Finally school had ended for Ephram and he was now a high school graduate! However, although exciting, it was nothing compared to the wedding plans he and Madison had been planning for months now. Andy had hired a wedding planner for them to help with the big things and he was still in awe of how well his son was doing. He didnt look at his son as this little kid anymore...Ephram was an adult now and Andy saw that in him. Course he regrets what he did, but in the beginning it was all because he was trying to protect his son, who he found out, didnt need any protection. Ephram's determined to succeed no matter what obstacles lay in his path.

Yanu and Khaki were around also to help with plans. Ephram and Madison both agreed that they didnt want a big wedding, just family and some friends.

As the four of them were sitting around the table, Delia was chasing Trenton around who was in his 'baby cruiser'. He was now 5 months old and able to walk so long as he had the help of his baby cruiser. From the other room she yelled "what can I do in the wedding? I'm too old to walk down with flowers so dont even suggest it!"

Ephram chuckled as he rubbed Madison's back who said "you could be one of my bride's maids"

"Cool" Delia replied, still playing with Trenton.

Yanu said in a low voice "you guys havent figured that out yet? The date for the wedding is like 3 months"  
"SHUT UP" laughed Madison, "we've got everything worked out mostly, I just like to play around a bit...I'm still allowed to do that you know"

they all laughed.

"So uh, Yanu, what'cha gonna do with your hair?" chuckled Ephram as he flung one of Yanu's dreads out of the way"

"what do you mean Ephram boy?" he said giving him a death look, "I'm going to put it back in a do-rag like I normally do at nice events like your wedding"

Madison hit Ephram lightly, "he was only kidding, Yan, you know that"

A few hours later Andy came to pick up Delia, then shortly after that Yanu and Khaki left as well. It was definitely a busy day, and it was going to be a very busy next few months. Those few months went by rather quickly and because of all the stress the wedding plans were on the both of them, they had little arguments here and there but nothing major.

One day while in Everwood, Ephram was having lunch with Amy and Bright, both invited to the wedding of course, and Amy was somewhat excited about it. "So tell me the plans again?" she smiled

"I've told you every day now for the past month."  
Bright replied "well, now we know it goes in one ear and out the other" the two made faces at each other.

"What we like so far is that we're going to have a short ceremony outside-blah blah blah-

then move it to the country club and have the whatever there"

"the after party?" replied Bright with a question

"the reception?" asked Amy looking at her brother with a stupid look

"yep, yep thats the one" replied Ephram pointing his fork at her with a smile.

The wedding day finally came, the beginning of August on a beautiful warm sunny day with no cloud in the sky.

(A/N; I need at least six reviews if you want me to continue with the wedding...hehe, but seeing how the place has been over run with Ephramy fans then I'm not sure I'll get the six. Lol. Couriro, where are you along with my other fans! I love you all, sorry it took me so long to write again...I would love to get the wedding scene finished)


	26. wedding vows

Wedding Vows

A small outdoor wedding, nothing fancy, nothing big, but to the two of these guys, its everything. Friends and family have come to witness the event of two people in love as they share their vows and "I do"s. Madison's family and friends on one side and Ephram's family and friends on the other. Bright of course making his way through all the girls trying to see how many numbers he could get. Trenton played contently on the ground next to Delia. It was a short ceremony anyway so why not just let it be relaxed.

Yanu was Ephram's best man and Khaki was Madison's bride of honor as Mindy was the brides maid.

"You have always been the one I've wanted to be with. I've always been told that if love is supposed to be, it will be, and if its not supposed to be, then it wont be, no matter what you try to do ot make it last. We've been through so much, both through good and bad times, but it all just makes our bond stronger, and my love for you deeper. I want to spend the rest of my life with you Madison. You inspire me to want to be the best man I can be." recited Ephram as he looked into Madison's eyes, standing at the alter.

After he was done the person marrying them turned to Madison and asked for her to share her vows, of which she did just that.

"You are first and foremost my best friend, Ephram. Although I know I can go on in this life without you by my side, I dont want to. I want you to be with me every step of the way, through every twist and turn life may throw at us. You give me strength...I love you more than I loved you yesterday, but I love you less than I will love you tomorrow because each day, the love I have for you only grows."

by this time there were tears in many of the audience members eyes. Just as quick as the ceremony started, it was over just as fast when the two said "I do" and exchanged rings. Ephram took Madison's face in his hands and kissed her sweetly and gave her a big warm hug, wrapping his arms around her and just holding her before letting go.

There was champagne in the limo and it was immediately popped open when the groom, bride, best people and brides people piled in. Everybody was screaming and laughing and having a joyous time, all the while leaving Ephram and Madison alone in their own little world. Madison's legs crossed over Ephram's as her arms wrapped around his neck, whispering sweet nothings into his ear. Ephram smiled as he lowered his head and closed his eyes. Just the feeling of Madison surrounded him with happiness. He looked up and whispered in her "do you realize just how much I love you?" he paused before continuing "I love you so much that not even the deepest ocean could equal half of it."

Madison chuckled "too bad we have this reception to go to, I'd much rather be in your arms than surrounded by all these people"

"ditto" replied Ephram as he kissed her cheek.

"I'm gonna throw the cork at you two if you dont join US!" laughed Yanu with his arm raised to throw the cork.

Just then the limo had stopped and parked in front of the country club to let everybody out.

It seemed as though everybody was already at the country club, just waiting around inside and out to congratulate Ephram and Madison. Madison looked so beautiful, a simple strapless wedding gown that barely hit the floor. As they made their way inside, Bright threw himself across the room when he saw them and patted Ephram on his shoulder then jokingly said "they got an open bar! But the thing is, they require ID-"

"no" was all Ephram could say because he knew where this was headed

"hear me out!" he cleared his throat and looked around "oh, I'm going to steal this guy for a second" and walked a few paces with his arm around Ephram's shoulders to get out of ear shot of the adults. "I was informed" he said in a low voice, "that everybody is getting carded except the people at the head table..."

"What are you saying Bright?" asked Ephram as he cocked his head.

"well...uh, you know...you're at the head table."  
"I'm not drinking Bright, we know what happens when I drink, I get stupid. SO, instead of asking me" he pointed to Mindy who was coming back from the bar "go ask Mindy, she'll help you out"

Bright slapped Ephram's hand and said "Thanks dawg, I owe you!"

"not really" Ephram said under his breath as he shook his head amused. He decided to go find his girlfriend, oh wait, his WIFE, of which he smiled intently just at the thought. He actually found Delia with his son first, they were just coming in from playing with the other kids outside. Ephram picked up his son and gave him a big hug before giving him back to Delia. He began looking around again, then it seemed as though his heart skipped a beat as his eyes landed on Madison, halfway across the room. She seemed even more beautiful now than ever before. Just then somebody smacked him on the back, which apparently was enough to knock Ephram out of his daze, of which he was holding his breath which made him sort of cough. Before the person who hit him could say 'congratulations', Ephram made a quick beeline for Madison. Her beauty was radiant as the sunshine came in through the glass and hit her at such an angle it looked as though she were an angel. Madison saw him and smiled brightly but before the two could hug or even touch each other, people grabbed the two of them and did their own thing with them.

Finally they got to sit down and have a toast, ate dinner and had the first dance. People got to dance with either one of them if they paid a dollar. Bright, the buzzed, light drinker that he is, decided to pay a dollar to dance with Ephram, "Mindy is so cool!" he chuckled as he and Ephram went around in circles. But Ephram wasnt paying too much attention, his eyes and mind were focused more on Madison, who seemed to glance every so often at him. He wanted to spend some time with her without interuption and he figured that once everybody got done having their way with the two of them and were drunk enough then he and Madison could have their time. He had to be patient.

(**A/N; there is more of the wedding reception, I just wanted to get this part done and out of the way and to let you all know I'M STILL WRITING and the second part of this chapter should be really fun. Thanks guys!)**


	27. happy reception

**Part Two; Happy Reception (thanks for the reviews everybody, they mean a lot! definitely appreciate it! keep em comin', cuz if they keep comin then there just might be more chapters! I dont know when the next chapter will be, but we'll see)**

Everbody filled the dance floor and danced happily. Bright had 2 girls around him as he just stood there grinning to himself as he took a sip of his wine. Everybody was so immersed with themselves and dancing and having a good time that Ephram and Madison finally got to be alone! While the dance floor was covered with a big circle of people taking turns break dancing or making up silly moves to the beat of the music, or doing the 'worm', Ephram and Madison were dancing to their own music off in the background, holding each other with their foreheads together. "How many glasses of wine have you had?" he asked playfully.

"just three" Madison said trying not to smile as she buried her head into his neck and tried not to laugh. She lifted her head and closed her eyes tightly and chuckled, "I'm allowed"

Ephram put his forehead against hers again and just held her closely as the two danced slowly. He couldnt help but close his eyes as he danced with this beautiful woman in his arms. He didnt want it to end.

"This has been one of the most amazing days of my life...and I got to share it with you, Eph. Thank you" Madison said

"You're what makes it amazing"

"you're so good with words, thats one thing that made me fall for you"

Ephram smiled as he tilted his head, "you know what made me fall for you? The way you intereacted with Delia, the passion you have for your music, just...just everything"

Nina and Andy were talking and making small talk with Harold and his wife when Bright came up to them and asked them if they had seen Ephram and Madison. Nina looked around the room and then pointed, "they havent moved from that spot for hours."

"Oh right, looking where they were when I last saw them didnt come to me"

"it never does son, it never does" Harold said jokingly.

Bright made a beeline for the couple, he was too buzzed to care that they looked like they just wanted to be alone.

"Hey Bitches" he said jokingly, "you two taking the limo home?" he inquired

Ephram looked at him as though he had several heads, "is that the only reason you came over here?"

"No," smiled Bright, "also to tell you that the bar is closing and...uh" he looked around "to tell you, that folks, want you, on the dance floor"

There was silence

"Okay so I lied about that, but-"

Madison playfully said "Go away Bright."

"I can do that!" Bright replied as he did the moonwalk towards the dance floor and his two dates.

10 minutes later Ephram looked at Madison with loving eyes, "lets go home..."

"let me do one thing"

"whats that?" he said as Madison leaned in to kiss him slowly. She teased him by touching his lips with the tip of her tongue. The two kissed sweetly and gently before taking each other's hand and trying to sneak out of the reception.

"Where are you two lovebirds going!" yelled Harold

The two didnt stop, Ephram just smiled as he said "Madison's tired, one too many drinks so I'm taking her home! Have a good night everybody!" and they rushed to the limo which took them home. The whole way home the two cuddled together, saying nothing, just enjoying each other's company. Madison's forhead was against Ephram's cheek as her hand kept running through his hair on the nape of his neck.

By the time they did get home it was pretty late, almost 11pm. The two got into their pajamas, climbed into bed and fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms. Before drifting off to sleep, Ephram reminded Madison that they left for their honeymoon in two days and that Andy and Nina would take care of Trenton. Even though Madison was worried about leaving her son with Andy, she was too tired to say anything, she just fell asleep next to her husband with her arm over his midsection. This was perfect she thought to herself as she went off to dreamland.


End file.
